Discrete Math Project

About

The vision of the Discrete Math Project is to give all students the opportunity to develop a positive identity as learners of mathematics and see themselves as mathematically skilled. Our mission is to expand access to meaningful experiences that advance secondary students' mathematical ways of thinking and to support them as they use mathematics to make sense of the world and to enable them to make critical decisions based on mathematically sound principles. 

The main goals of the Discrete Math Project are to promote a college and career readiness culture and to help traditionally disenfranchised students qualify for and succeed in college-level mathematics courses, ultimately broadening the base of student populations in STEM-related college majors. We have designed courses for curious, thoughtful students who need more than formulas and equations. The project takes issues of equity in mathematics education by opening access to mathematics to traditionally marginalized students through the introduction of non-traditional, but relevant topics. This provides all students equal footing.

Though the content consists of discrete mathematics topics, the curriculum aims at developing students' mathematical ways of thinking, habits of mind or mathematical practice (in the sense of the CCSS' Standards for Mathematical Practice). This goal is inextricably linked to students' intellectual needs. Therefore, the program seeks to advance students' ways of thinking by fostering their mathematical curiosity.

Because no curriculum can teach itself, the program also provides professional learning opportunities to teachers, principals, paraprofessionals, and teachers on assignment as instructional coaches in order to support the implementation and evaluation of this course. These opportunities should attend to teachers' own content and pedagogical knowledge, first and foremost. Additionally, professional development must also attend to teachers ability to hear and make use of students' thinking during instruction.

See the Discrete Math Project Collaborative web site for more details!

Grants

Pictured from left to right: Randy Philipp, Ovie Soto, Trang Vu, Chrissy Ada, Mike O’Sullivan, Esmeralda Orozco, Daniel Crook, Leslie Dietiker, and Bill Zahner

Original grant: The California Department of Education awarded San Diego State University and the Sweetwater Union High School District one of five $1.28 million California Mathematics Readiness Challenge Initiative (CMRCI) grants. The goal of the CMRCI program was to is to provide in-depth professional learning opportunities for collaborative teams of secondary educators, their school-site administrator, and faculty from their partner institution(s) of higher education to support the implementation and evaluation of grade 12 experiences that are designed to prepare pupils for placement into college-level courses in mathematics. San Diego State and Sweetwater used the grant to design and implement a discrete mathematics course for high school seniors. The project built on the existing infrastructure of the SDSU-Sweetwater Compact for Success, and this work provided a structure for faculty and teachers to collaborate around designing a course to better prepare prospective students. The new curriculum was first used in Sweetwater’s Discrete Math classes during the 2017-18 school year.

Principal Investigator, Dr. Osvaldo “Ovie” Soto, is a veteran high school teacher and a graduate of the SDSU-UCSD doctoral program in mathematics education. Soto also has an MS in Mathematics from SDSU. Since completing his doctoral studies, Dr. Soto has dedicated his career to the improvement of mathematics instruction in the San Diego region by mentoring over 50 secondary math teachers through Math for America San Diego’s Master Teacher Fellowship Program. Professors Randy Philipp (School of Teacher Education) and Bill Zahner (Mathematics and Statistics Department), of SDSU’s Center for Mathematics and Science Education, were the grant’s Co-PIs. Sweetwater’s Assistant Superintendent Ana Maria Alvarez was the grant’s Co-PI at the district, and she was assisted by Roman Del Rosario, the Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction. Professors Mike O’Sullivan (Mathematics and Statistics Dept. Chair) and Vadim Ponomarenko (Department of Mathematics), were supporting the grant’s teachers as consultants. This was made possible through the support of College of Sciences Dean Stanley Maloy and College of Education Dean Joe Johnson.