ABSTRACT
The University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (UCSMP) consists of several independent, yet interconnected, components whose goal is to improve students understanding of mathematics in Kindergarten through Grade 12. The UCSMP secondary curriculum consists of six courses called Transition Mathematics; Algebra; Geometry; Advanced Algebra; Functions, Statistics and Trigonometry; and Precalculus and Discrete Mathematics. This chapter contains an overview of the UCSMP secondary curriculum, including its development, content, and main features, and a summary of the results of four research studies conducted about the effects of the curriculum on students achievement. The UCSMP students outperformed the comparison students on both the coordinate and synthetic geometry proofs. The emphasis of the UCSMP courses on realistic uses of mathematics and on multiple dimensions of understanding influences students achievement in a positive way. Teachers knowledge of mathematics, their pedagogical skills, the ways in which they implement the curriculum, and their expectations of their students also vary.
