Charting the Course: DC’s Path to Math Proficiency
Guest Blog by Angela Das, Director of Math at Friendship Public Charter Schools
Nearly twenty years ago, I walked into a classroom at Friendship Southeast as a wide-eyed, second-grade teacher, fresh out of college. I never imagined that moment would spark a career-long journey into math education—one that would take me from the front of that classroom to serving as Director of Math at Friendship Public Charter Schools, and as a member of the DC Math Task Force convened by OSSE. Recently, I’ve also helped lead the city-wide Math Hub, alongside leaders like Patricia Brantley and Josh Boots at EmpowerK12, where we’re united in our mission to ensure every student in DC has access to strong math instruction.
From this vantage point, I’ve had the opportunity to witness—and contribute to—some exciting progress. In 2024, DC students made remarkable gains in math proficiency. According to the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data, our fourth graders posted an eight-point increase—one of the largest gains in the country—and our eighth graders improved by two points. These achievements are especially meaningful in a national climate where many school systems are still seeing post-pandemic declines.
And yet, while there’s much to celebrate, we know the work is far from finished.
Despite the encouraging upward trend, overall math performance in DC still hasn’t returned to pre-pandemic levels. The students most affected—often those labeled “at-risk”—still face significant hurdles. This matters deeply because math isn’t just another subject. It’s a predictor of long-term success. Research from Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College tells us that early mathematical aptitude can forecast future leadership and innovation in critical careers. In simpler terms: if we want our students to thrive in tomorrow’s world, we need to make sure they’re fluent in the language of numbers today.
That’s why I believe we need to double down as a city on math education, now more than ever. With coordination, commitment, and the right investments, we can scale the kinds of strategies that actually work and accelerate the progress we’ve already made.
Friendship’s Approach
At Friendship, our approach to math instruction centers on four foundational priorities that work together to support student learning and engagement.
We began by adopting Eureka Math², a high-quality, rigorous curriculum designed to help students understand not just how math works, but why it matters. Rather than promoting rote memorization, we encourage students to explore mathematical concepts through real-world connections, making lessons meaningful and relevant to their everyday experiences.
Recognizing that many of our teachers come from varied academic backgrounds and may not have majored in math, we’ve made significant investments in professional development. Teachers engage in lesson rehearsals and receive timely, actionable feedback. Instructional coaches are present in classrooms, offering real-time support, and we’ve identified seven core instructional practices that guide our teaching. We spend deliberate time helping educators master these techniques to ensure consistency and excellence across all classrooms.
Our commitment to data-driven instruction ensures we’re meeting students where they are. By analyzing formal assessments and informal classroom data, we help teachers identify learning trends and respond swiftly to student needs. We also empower students by making learning goals transparent so they know what success looks like and how to achieve it.
Finally, we’re working to reshape how students and families perceive math. We promote the idea that math is accessible to everyone and emphasize effort and perseverance as the path to success. By engaging families through resources and shared learning opportunities, we aim to build confidence and foster a supportive learning environment both at school and at home.
The results speak volumes. Last year, our students achieved math proficiency gains at three times the state average, and for students identified as at-risk, those gains were more than five times the average.
Still, we know that no school can do this alone. Achieving true, system-wide change requires the collective will of our city.
The Path Forward
Thankfully, we already have a playbook. We saw it work with literacy. When DC embraced the science of reading, we came together—schools, families, and policymakers—to invest in high-quality curricula, professional development, and staffing models that made success possible. We didn’t just acknowledge the data, we acted on it. We can do the same for math. In fact, we have an opportunity to accelerate progress even faster—because unlike with literacy, we’re not starting from scratch. There is already a strong body of research on effective math instruction, and states across the country that are making notable gains have been generous in sharing their strategies and resources. DC can—and should—build on that momentum. To truly scale what works in math instruction, we must match the kind of focused commitment we once dedicated to reading. This requires intentional and sustained investment in the elements that make a lasting difference.
One essential step is providing stipends for staff training that deepens educators’ understanding of how mathematical concepts progress and connect over time. This kind of learning equips teachers to build stronger, more coherent instruction for their students. We also need dedicated math interventionists—skilled professionals who work directly in classrooms to support students with unfinished learning. By providing small-group instruction alongside classroom teachers, they help ensure every student gets the targeted support they need to succeed.
Scaling success also depends on citywide professional development that reflects a shared vision for excellent math instruction. With aligned training and common expectations, we can foster greater consistency and coherence across all schools. And just as importantly, we must bring families into this effort. By offering tools and resources that help caregivers understand what their children are learning in math, we can build their confidence and create strong home-school partnerships that reinforce learning beyond the classroom.
Yes, we face challenges. Resource gaps are real, and the current climate makes it easy to put long-term investments on the back burner. But we can’t afford to wait. The benefits of investing in math education go beyond the classroom. They prepare our students for financial independence, critical thinking, and careers in fast-growing STEM fields. The impact will stretch far into the future—not just for individual students, but for the entire city.
Math is more than a subject. It’s a foundation for opportunity. And if we truly believe in giving every student in DC the future they deserve, we need to treat it that way.
Want to learn more about Friendship? Check us out at friendshipschools.org
You can also listen to our podcast, where we have real teachers in our network share about their experiences: https://www.friendshipschools.org/tenacious-teacher/
Interested in working with us? Learn more at https://careers.friendshipschools.org/home
