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Math improvement rarely stalls because districts aren’t taking action. More often, it stalls because well-intentioned supports accumulate faster than schools can turn them into a coherent, actionable instructional plan.

The instinct to seek additional support is understandable. Students need help immediately. Teachers deserve time and training. Families want progress they can see. So districts invest in tutoring, intervention blocks, new tools and professional learning. Those approaches can make a difference. But they have the most impact when they are directly connected to the work that students and teachers do every day.

That question matters now because California districts are in the midst of choosing math materials and may soon have more resources to invest in student support and professional development. The governor’s May budget revision proposes $5 billion in flexible funding that districts could use to strengthen teaching and learning. Used well, those dollars could help districts deepen instruction. Used poorly, they could become another layer of activity that makes schools busier without strengthening instruction.

Los Angeles offers a useful example of a different approach. Nearly a decade ago, with institutional and financial support from LAUSD, the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, a nonprofit that co-manages 20 traditional public schools in partnership with the district, adopted IM® Math by Illustrative Mathematics in its network schools to provide coherent, grade-level math instruction supported by high-quality instructional materials.

A new analysis from Leanlab Education, a nonprofit research organization, examined publicly available LAUSD assessment data over several years.

The analysis found that schools using IM Math grew faster than similar schools that did not, even as math outcomes improved across LAUSD overall. The difference was equivalent to roughly three to four additional months of math learning each year. It also found that schools receiving curriculum-aligned implementation support saw math scores improve after that support began, with gains increasing over time.

What drove these results was not a single program, but an instructional vision that connected curriculum, professional learning and implementation support.

IM Math provided the instructional foundation, with lessons designed to build on one another from day to day and year to year. But adopting the curriculum was not the end of the story. The PartnershipLA worked alongside teachers and leaders in bringing that design into day-to-day practice through professional learning, planning support, coaching and classroom observations.  A coach-the-coaches model strengthened the partnership’s capacity to support schools over time.

Building on that foundation and with an investment from the Gates Foundation, the PartnershipLA and LAUSD worked together to roll out these practices across the district. LAUSD led the expansion, establishing the guidance, funding and leadership structures to bring high-quality math materials to schools systemwide, while the PartnershipLA contributed tools, lessons and coaching capacity to the district at large.

That combination mattered because teachers are the ones who bring the curriculum to life. With strong materials and aligned support, teachers guided students to reason, explain, question, practice and revise their thinking. That helped build understanding and fluency over time instead of memorizing disconnected steps. As lessons built on one another, students could connect what they learned yesterday to the work in front of them today.

Even well-designed materials lose impact when the rest of the system points in different directions. Professional learning drifts if it is not anchored to the curriculum that students use every day. Tutoring and intervention can give students more time without giving them a clearer path. None of this happens because educators or district leaders lack commitment. It happens because aligning a large system is hard, especially when leaders are being asked to show progress quickly.

Educators are already doing the hard work. The challenge for district leaders is to ensure the many supports around teachers work together in ways that are easier to sustain and more likely to reach students. If approved, California’s next round of investments will give districts a chance to turn this lesson into action.

Students who have been denied strong math instruction cannot afford further fragmentation in reform. They deserve access to grade-level mathematics that helps them see patterns, solve problems, and develop confidence in their own ability to do math. Educators deserve materials, time, and support that are all working toward the same goal.

The new findings offer a playbook, but not a shortcut: Start with a shared instructional vision, choose strong materials, align professional learning and implementation support around them and keep improving over time.

That is hard work. It is also how districts turn smart investments into lasting gains in student learning.

Disclosure: Gates Foundation provides financial support to LA School Report’s parent company, The 74. 

Guadalupe Guerrero is chief executive officer of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, with over 30 years of experience as an educator and district leader in the public schools of San Francisco, Boston and Portland.

Kristin Umland is a mathematician, educator and chief executive officer and cofounder of Illustrative Mathematics®, a nonprofit organization working to create a world where all learners know, use and enjoy mathematics.