Our primary goal is to ensure a high-quality mathematics education for every student. Although content is a necessary and absolutely essential ingredient, it alone does not guarantee a high-quality program. We know that teaching shapes and influences what students learn. As a result, in NCTM's Standards documents, teaching approaches are crucial in the discussions and elaborations of the Standards. This is not to say that the Council espouses only one kind of teaching.
Effective teaching can look very different in different classrooms.
Good teachers use different strategies at different times for different purposes. PSSM gives teaching suggestions that come from real classrooms and real teachers. Therefore, NCTM's Principles and Standards document gives national vision and direction to help focus local efforts, not to preempt them. Even so, to help those who want more information as they develop their own curricula, PSSM includes more guidance on content matters than does the earlier NCTM Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics. A Closer Look at an NCTM Standard.