Four advisory panels have been appointed since 1999 alone to advise the nation on how best to teach mathematics: The National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century, National Research Council, the RAND Mathematics Study Panel, and the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. The reports emerging from each are detailed, often technical, but well worth reading, especially for those involved in math education, because they capture what each expert panel concludes schools must teach and students learn in math. What these reports make clear is that mathematics teaching and learning are complex undertakings. The National Research Council, for example, refers to “mathematical proficiency” as five intertwined strands, described in the box on page 3 (Kilpatrick, Swafford, & Findell, 2001). Learning each of these strands is an ongoing process that builds on itself. As new concepts and skills are learned, new terms and symbols must also be learned and older skills remembered and applied.

The final report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel (2008) speaks clearly to the need for math curricula that fosters student success in algebra (and beyond) and experienced math teachers who use researched-based instructional strategies. The report also stresses the “mutually reinforcing benefits of conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and automatic recall of facts” (National Mathematics Advisory Panel, 2008, p. xiv). Math teachers know this already—and recognize the very real consequences of students not achieving a level of mastery with foundational math concepts. Disability can further compromise student learning (Spear-Swerling, 2005), especially if the disability affects recall of information and the generalization of skills from one learning situation to another.

Which brings us to the next two parts in this Evidence for Education: How disabilities can affect math learning and how to effectively address these special learning needs.