Math Can Take You Places

Math Can Take You Places, a program developed by KERA’s Educational Resource Center and funded by Travelocity, is an innovative program that uses math in real-world travel situations to connect students with the math skills needed to succeed in high school and beyond. In response to a Harvard University study showing the correlation between students who fail algebra and those who don’t complete high school, the Math Can Take You Places program was created to help fourth- through sixth-grade students build a strong foundation in pre-algebra skills. This will better prepare them for high school algebra and increase their chances of graduating and continuing on to college.

The program focuses on the mathematical concepts proven to be the most difficult on standardized tests. Real-world situations presented against a travel backdrop teach those concepts in a way that students can better comprehend.

Math Can Take You Places is in use by 950 teachers in 130 school districts in 12 U.S. states, reaching approximately 2 million children. Educators also have worked with the following organizations to develop a version of the program for use in after-school programs: Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys and Girls Clubs, Girls Inc., Girl Scouts, and Junior Achievement.

In February 2005, an independent evaluation of the program conducted by the University of Texas at Dallas showed that Math Can Take You Places “made a statistically significant difference on the achievement of the students who participated.”

Designed by 10 Master Teachers, the technology-based curriculum uses real-world travel settings for its videos, lesson plans and educational games that focus on patterns, equivalency, reasonableness, measurement and problem solving. The curriculum also will be available in Spanish and online.

For more information, or to enquire about acquiring the program, please contact KERA at math@kera.org.