Why do results matter?
Shormann Math builds on a solid foundation of time-tested teaching methods, including the incremental development + continual review format pioneered by John Saxon(1923-1996). And not just Saxon’s teaching methods, but his teaching thoughts as well, including his thought that
Results, not methodology, should be the basis of curriculum decisions.
One of the primary reasons John Saxon developed his math curriculum in the 1980s was because new ways of teaching math were not working. Math “educrats” at the time were promoting their untested “visions” of math teaching. But with 3 engineering degrees, John was a math user before he became a math teacher. Not only that, he was a test pilot. If anyone knew the extreme value and importance of testing a new product, it was John!
Results matter because they reveal whether or not a new product really works. And while statistics certainly don’t reveal everything about a new product, they can certainly reveal many things. Most math curricula don’t provide this level of detail on student performance. But with Shormann Math, each new course is beta-tested in a live, online setting first before releasing it to the general public. The following are statistics from the beta-test of Shormann Algebra 1. The results show that the majority of students made an A! The following statistics, plus other detailed information about the course, can also be found in our Shormann Algebra 1 teacher’s guide. To purchase Shormann Math, click here.
Overall Performance
Discussion: The average student in our beta test made an A in the class! Because each new Shormann Math course is beta-tested in a live online class setting, Dr. Shormann gets to know the students on more than just a “numbers only” basis. And we all know that God doesn’t make clones, so the fact that not every student performed the same should not be a surprise. Natural talent definitely matters, but so do things like attitude and maturity. Dr. Shormann spends time during the video lectures encouraging students to develop fruits like patience and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), as well as persevering with joy (James 1:2-3), and gratefulness (I Thessalonians 5:18).
Practice Sets
Discussion: You’ve probably never seen statistics on student performance in a math class before, which is why it is important to discuss the data! The decreasing trend over time is exactly what we expected. Two big factors are responsible for the trend: 1) There’s more review of previously-learned concepts at the beginning, so it’s easier and 2) student effort tends to decrease the closer you get to the end of the year!
What we had hoped for was a Practice Set average above 85%, and that was achieved in all 4 quarters! 85% is a good cutoff for determining whether students are understanding, and retaining most of the concepts learned.
Note also the high first quarter average. Because Shormann Math is built on John Saxon’s method of integrating geometry and algebra, students using Saxon Math 8/7 or Saxon Algebra ½ will be most comfortable starting Shormann Math. However, not all beta-test students used Saxon previously, so the high first quarter average is a good indication that students who successfully completed any pre-algebra course should do just fine in Shormann Math.
Weekly Quizzes
Discussion: Weekly Quizzes show a similar trend to the Practice Sets, challenging the students more as the year progressed. A score of 8 out of 10 or higher is a good indication of whether students understood the lessons covered that week. We are pleased that scores were well above this in all four quarters!
Quarterly Exams
Discussion: Notice the Quarterly Exams do not follow the same trend as Practice Sets or Weekly Quizzes, with Quarter 1 having the lowest average. And this is where beta-testing a new product is so valuable. We realized that we were asking a lot for 9th-grade level students, most of which had never taken a cumulative exam like this. The solution? Practice exams! Just like when learning a sport, a musical instrument, etc., good practice results in good performance. The beta-test students clearly performed best on first quarter Practice Sets and Quizzes. Most likely, if they were given practice exams prior to their quarterly exam 1, this would have been their highest exam average. Now, all quarterly exams have two practice exams that students use to study for their actual exam.
85%+ is an indicator of good retention and understanding of concepts covered in a quarter. For all 4 quarters, student averages were at, or well above 85%. Because of Shormann Math’s format of continual review, we are basically asking students to be responsible for “all their math, all the time.” These results show that on average, students are responding very well!
Studying His Word and His Works 