8th Grade Report Overview

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the expectation for alignment to the CCSSM. The materials meet expectations in the areas of focus and coherence, but do not meet the expectations for alignment to the CCSSM in the areas of rigor and the MPs. In the area of focus within the grade, there are above grade-level topics included in the assessment, but they do not impact the structure of the materials. The materials spend 76 percent of the class time on major work. In the area of coherence, the materials include content that is shaped by the CCSSM clusters with enough work to be viable for one school year. All students engage in extensive practice with grade-level problems with supporting and additional content that engages students in the major work of the grade. Natural connections are made between clusters and domains. However, the materials fail to note grade-to-grade progression. In the area of rigor and balance, all three aspects of rigor are sometimes present in the materials. Even though there are glimpses of balance in some units, most of the lessons focus on procedural skill and fluency. There isn't enough opportunities for students to make their own connections or write explanations/reflections to the connections that they are making. A majority of the lessons require memorized tasks and procedures without students having to develop meaningful connections on their own. The extension problems usually ask for reflections on procedural skill. There are several missed opportunities to challenge students to explore their own strategies and reflect on the connections that they are making. The three aspects of rigor are not well balanced. In the area of practice content connections, the Materials attempt to incorporate the MPs in each lesson. However, the materials are so frequently labeled as MPs that a teacher cannot reliably use the materials to know when MPs are being carefully attended to. There are many instances when questions are labeled as an MP, when in fact they are just a computation question. The materials incorporate questions in which students have to justify and explain their answers, but lack lesson structures in which students would discover their own solution paths, present their arguments, and justify their conclusion. Vocabulary is presented but not always incorporated meaningfully into the lesson.