Academic rigor is an educational buzz word. No seriously, we could probably turn any staff meeting, professional development seminar, heck, even this post into a drinking game.
For example: Never have I ever heard the phrase, “academic rigor” during staff meeting. Chances are, most of us would take a drink.
You probably had to be living under a rock the last ten years of teaching in order to not hear the term “academic rigor”.
But, what exactly is academic rigor?
Academic rigor is NOT more work. It is also not adding MORE math problems with larger numbers or more operations for students to solve.
No. Rigor is not just strict, difficult, or exhaustive.
Tony Wagner defines rigor as that which, “…ensures that ALL students master the skills they need to succeed as lifelong learners, workers, and citizens” (2008).
He goes on to say that, “We need to use academic content to teach the seven survival skills every day, at every grade level, and in every class.”
Rigorous academic content is that which requires students to think critically to solve problems in creative ways. It allows them the opportunity to work with others and communicate their ideas clearly and precisely. Furthermore, it requires that students adapt to challenges to solve novel problems.
Notice, it did not say to use bigger numbers or above grade level concepts..
How do you increase academic rigor in math?
For the purpose of this post, I am going to share ONE way to increase academic rigor in math and that is with numberless word problems.
What are numberless word problems? ..
They are word problems where the numbers have been taken out of the problem so only the context of the problem remains.
Why would you want to do this?
How many times have you asked students to explain what operation they used to solve a problem? Instead, they shout out the answer to that SPECIFIC problem.
The question was not, “What is the answer to this word problem?” The question was, “What operation do I use to solve this problem and WHY?”
By taking out the numbers in the word problems, you are encouraging your students to think about the context of the problem. They’re forced to be creative. They must adapt and identify evidence to support their claim. In order to test their theory, they must have initiative to try a variety of examples.
Yes, word problems are an amazing way to increase academic rigor in math. They incorporate the seven survival skills that Tony Wagner outlined as essential to 21st Century thinking.
Check this out:
In short:
Instead of giving students in your classroom MORE work, more problems, larger numbers, with MORE operations, keep it simple.
Take out the numbers from your word problems. Encourage your students to justify their thinking as to what operation they would use to solve and why.
To find out more about the 8 different types if word problems, or how to support your students in approaching word problems, check out this post..
Looking for specific numberless word problem resources? Check out the bundle of National Word Problems a Day. You and your students can turn everyday into a celebration with these National Day themed numberless word problems. Encourage meaningful math discussions with your students with this instructional practice that supports student thinking and understanding.
