Photo by Allison Shelley for EDUimages/CC BY-NC 4.0
U.S. public school students have long had uneven access to high-quality mathematics learning opportunities. For example, some students have access to more advanced mathematics courses in middle and high school that are unavailable to other students. Many students also do not get the interventions and support they need when they struggle with the content in their mathematics classes. To make matters more complicated, teachers do not always have access to the instructional materials and professional development they need to help students learn mathematics.
RAND’s American Mathematics Educator Study (AMES) is investigating students’ access to high-quality mathematics teaching and learning from elementary through high school and pathways to college and career. AMES particularly focuses on mathematics teaching and learning opportunities for Black, Hispanic, and low-income students. AMES is administered through the RAND American Teacher Panel and American School Leader Panel, and it is funded by the Gates Foundation.
AMES was motivated by research that consistently documents inequitable mathematics learning opportunities and outcomes for Black, Hispanic, and low-income students. The goals of AMES are to:
AMES administers nationally representative surveys to K–12 principals and math teachers yearly from 2023 through 2027. In addition to collecting nationally representative data, AMES also collects state representative data from teachers and principals in the states of California, Florida, New York, and Texas, as well as high school principals in Texas and the state of Washington. AMES will supplement the surveys with in-depth interviews with teachers and principals and more-detailed surveys to teachers about their instructional practices.
AMES is collecting data on the following topics:
