ROOT is a teacher-researcher alliance for the improvement of Grades 6-8 math achievement
IMPORTANT: This site is currently under development, with updates set for August 2022. See here for more information about the ROOT project.
Welcome to the ROOT home page. This site is for middle school math teachers interested in learning more about effective strategies for improving math achievement, with a focus on problem solving and mathematical modeling. Below you can view our strategies, categorized by their construct, EAC or SOS.
Explicit Attention to Concepts (EAC)
Instructional strategies and routines that…
- focus on concepts
- make concepts explicit and public
- emphasize connections
Student Opportunities to Struggle (SOS)
Instructional strategies and routines in which students…
- focus on sense-making
- apply sustained mental effort
- engage with important math
Additional Resources
Instructional Guides
Guides for implementing EAC and SOS instruction
Professional Development Modules
Modules for implementing EAC and SOS instruction
Dissemination
Published work on the ROOT Project.
About ROOT
The key features of the ROOT Project
- Adopts and extend the EAC/SOS framework for effective middle grades mathematics teaching.
- Focuses on modeling and problem solving, an integral strand of STEM learning.
- Positions teachers as local experts central to development of effective instructional methods.
- Transfers research methods from cluster crossover trial to teaching and professional development settings.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1907840. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.