Students are sense-makers. If given the opportunity, they are capable of developing creative and useful strategies. Many routine skills that have dominated classroom practices of the past can be acquired, when they are needed, in the context of solving problems. Students' attitudes and dispositions toward mathematics are strongly influenced by classroom experiences, the home, and the community. Confidence, eagerness, persistence and other valued dispositions develop while doing interesting and important mathematics.
All students are capable of doing mathematics.
In Delaware, as in the rest of the nation, students must be given the opportunity to prepare themselves to be productive and successful members of society in the 21st century. The Delaware Mathematics Curriculum Framework is written primarily for Delaware teachers. Rather than prescribing specific instructional practices, the document is intended to help all of us focus on the essential elements of a world-class program in mathematics for ALL students. There are many ways in which the vision presented here can be realized. Classroom teachers are the heart of the mathematics education program.