Online approach adds up

UI offers new Web-based resources to maximize student math potential

Two new online resources recently developed by University of Iowa experts will help educators and parents know if students are on track to develop their full math potential.

One resource, the Inventory for Decisions about Educational Acceleration and Learning (IDEAL) Solutions for Math Acceleration, is a Web-based system that provides student-centered feedback to inform decisions about academic acceleration in math for elementary and middle school students.

Co-developers Susan Assouline and Nick Colangelo from the UI College of Education Belin-Blank Center for Talented and Gifted Development led a team in developing the Web-based system. Both educators and parents can use the program at www.idealsolutionsmath.com to assess whether students are in a math program that is best matched to their potential.

The other resource, the Iowa Algebra Readiness Assessment, was developed by the UI College of Education Iowa Testing Program and is offered online for the first time this month. Educators can use the results from this aptitude test to enter into IDEAL Solutions as a tool to assess a student’s math potential.

Both resources are fee-based, though IDEAL Solutions provided coupons to educators and parents over the first few months to give them the opportunity to use the service at no cost.

“It’s no longer news that American students have mediocre performance on math tests in comparison to international counterparts, as underscored by the ‘calls to action’ issued by several national advisory panels over the past few years,” says Assouline, Belin-Blank Center associate director. “What is news is that there is now a response.

For more information on IDEAL Solutions for Math Acceleration, call Assouline at 319-335-6148. For more information on the Iowa Algebra Readiness Assessment, call Catherine Welch with UI Iowa Testing Programs at 319-335-6274 or visit www.education.uiowa.edu/itp/iara/iara.aspx.

“This collaborative effort is really about helping young people succeed to the fullest extent possible,” Welch says. “The powerful information resulting from this effort will help guide parents and educators to ensure students are challenged and engaged.”