Math Pathways is an initiative from the Ohio Department of Education, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the Ohio Math Initiative that focuses on equivalent courses that will satisfy the credit requirement for Algebra 2. OESCA is providing support for the Math Pathways initiative and ESCs have been involved in initiative planning/work groups, have participated in pilot programs and will eventually serve as Math Pathways facilitators.
There are three courses for which teachers can be trained:
1. Mathematics Modeling and Reasoning
This portion of the initiative is no longer considered a "pilot" program, but rather a two-year professional learning/training course. Mathematical Modeling and Reasoning is an advanced quantitative reasoning course - the application of basic math skills such as algebra to the analysis and interpretation of quantitative information (numbers and units) in real-world contexts to make decisions relevant to daily life. Critical thinking is its primary objective and outcome and it emphasizes interpretation, representation, calculation, analysis/synthesis, assumptions and communication.
2. Data Science Foundations
Data science is an area of mathematics that uses quantitative reasoning, statistics and computer science to gain meaningful insights from data. Data science focuses on using data to make predictions and decisions. Students will reason with and think critically about data in all forms and will develop their understanding of data analysis, sampling, correlation/causation, bias and uncertainty, probability, modeling with data, making and evaluating data-based arguments, and more.
3. Discrete Math/Computer Science
Discrete Mathematics is an area of mathematics that most closely connects with the field of computer science. It is the study of mathematical structures that are countable or otherwise distinct and separable, and it focuses on computational thinking, problem solving and computer science concepts.