In another recent article on Shaped, I explored how the language we use about math—what we praise, what we fear, and what we call “hard”—shapes how students see themselves as mathematicians. I want to expand on that idea in light of a recent EdWeek webinar I joined with Kunjan Narechania, CEO of Watershed Advisors, and Katey Arrington, Ph.D., Director of Systemic Transformation at the Charles A. Dana Center at UT Austin, moderated by Chad Aldeman, HMH advisor and national literacy expert.
Our conversation centered on one big question: With math achievement at a decade low, what would it take to rewire the whole ecosystem, so that every learner, and every teacher, feels like a math person? Here’s what emerged:
Math anxiety is not a personal problem—it’s a system problem.
For too long, many people have treated math anxiety as an individual problem, often blaming it on a lack of confidence. In reality, though, it’s a systemic issue baked into how schools and society talk about math.
Think about it: in schools, we celebrate reading with book fairs and read-athons, but math rarely gets the same joy. We forget that math, like reading, is about discovery, reasoning, and understanding. It’s about making sense of ideas, not just arriving at the right answer. Yet, “being good at math” is often defined by being fast or correct. Those signals tell students—and teachers—who belongs and who doesn’t. Soon the idea that “you don’t have to be good at math” easily becomes “you can’t be good at math.” And when that belief is internalized, students take fewer risks, shy away from struggle, and eventually disengage. The result is lower perseverance and ultimately, lower achievement.
With math achievement at a decade low, what would it take to rewire the whole ecosystem, so that every learner, and every teacher, feels like a math person?
VP of Product Management and Strategy for Mathematics at HMH
Teacher approaches have powerful ripple effects - for good or otherwise.
Teachers shape the climate and culture of the classroom and set the tone for whether math feels like discovery and a place to be curious, or a space filled with judgement where you have to be “right”. If teachers carry their own math anxiety and doubt their math capabilities, it becomes harder to help students see themselves as mathematicians or build spaces where they feel capable, purposeful, and included. If teachers, however, approach math with curiosity and problem-solving, students will follow suit.
That’s why curriculum-embedded professional learning that gives teachers time and space to experience math themselves – exploring their own identities as math learners, and feeling joy and curiosity firsthand – is essential. After all, you can’t recreate what you’ve never felt.
Curriculum and professional learning have to work together.
When I think about what it takes to reduce math anxiety, I see it as two pieces: the teacher side and the systems side.
On the teacher side, it’s about fostering curiosity instead of judgement by encouraging students to “tell us about your thought process!” or elevating key moments in their work: “I see how your picture really shows ¾ in this problem. What next step makes sense?”, for example. Normalizing mistakes and supporting rough-draft thinking show students that math is about reasoning, not perfection.
On the systems side, teachers need the right tools for the job. That looks like high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) that offer meaningful, sequenced tasks that build understanding over time. The curriculum should serve as the backbone that helps teachers focus on engaging students, facilitating deep connections, and sense-making rather than constantly creating from scratch.
How do we bridge these two sides together? Curriculum-embedded professional learning. Like I talked about above, teachers learning in the context of HQIM—doing math together, practicing question strategies, and seeing what it sounds like to lead with curiosity—will help teachers grow their content knowledge and help students build theirs.
How do we build the systems that students deserve?
Even with strong materials and great professional learning, it’s implementation that determines impact. As Kunjan noted in our conversation, every adult in the system—from the state leader to the math coach to the teacher—has to learn something new for students to experience something different.
Time is a very real constraint, and that’s why how we use it matters so much. If we want students to see themselves as capable mathematicians, we have to prioritize giving teachers time to learn, space to play with math, and tools that make reasoning visible.
When we get those pieces right—curriculum, professional learning, and culture—we move from “some kids are math kids” to “everyone is.”
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HMH’s core math solution Into Math for Grades K–Algebra 1 includes language routines, real-world connections, and more that deepen students’ mathematical understanding.
Teach the fun of math with five hands-on activities that spark curiosity in your students.
