Spotlight on Nebraska District Experiencing Progress with Eureka Math²

Members of the Great Minds® team recently sat down with Jeanette Ramsey, director of teaching and learning at Northwest Public Schools in Grand Island, Nebraska, to hear about the district’s strong approach to math instruction. 

The rural district, located about an hour and a half west of Lincoln, began using Eureka Math® in the elementary grades in the fall of 2017 and moved to the newer Eureka Math²® curriculum in the fall of 2024.  

The district has consistently had higher proficiency rates than the state overall in math, and the degree to which it outperforms the state (as measured by student proficiency rates on the end-of-year state assessment) has been growing in recent years, as seen in the chart below.

Additionally, the district has a higher rate of growth than the state, which wasn’t always the case, as seen in this chart.

Teachers and students have expressed support for this year’s transition from Eureka Math to Eureka Math², as Jeanette explains in this interview, which has been edited for length and clarity.

So far, what are teachers saying about Eureka Math²?

Teachers like the look and feel of the workbooks, the embedded digital resources, and the way that students are even more engaged in the learning. They also like that the teacher editions include questions a teacher might ask the curriculum writers and provide answers as to why something is presented in a certain way and why it’s important.

What challenges have there been with Eureka Math²? 

I recently talked with grade 5 teachers who said one thing they’ve noticed is that the assessment questions, while being more readable, are more rigorous and require even more critical thinking. Teachers have been going over the questions in class and giving students similar practice questions, and the students are rising to the occasion.  

What’s the biggest change you’ve seen in your observations of classrooms since you made the switch to Great Minds math resources in 2017? 

There was not a lot of discussion in math classes before. There were a lot of students watching the teacher do a problem on the board and then doing 30 practice problems. Now you see students using more manipulatives, talking more about math, explaining their strategies, and using drawings. They have a solid base of conceptual understanding. Anytime a student can verbalize their process, you know that knowledge is more ingrained in their mind. That’s what I'm looking for: not only that they can do the problem, but that they can also explain the strategy they used.

What are families saying?

We heard some concern early on. We used Saxon Math before we switched to Eureka Math, and it was very different. We held parent nights in those first few years, and the Homework Helpers were useful. Teachers who have children in our district sometimes say, “We didn't learn math this way, but our kids have a greater understanding of math than we did, and they can explain it.” 

Do you have advice for other districts thinking about trying Eureka Math²? 

My advice is to invest in the professional development that’s offered. Don't try to pick up the manual and work through it on your own. The professional development that the Eureka Math² team provides is instrumental to a great implementation.

If you'd like to learn more about Northwest Public Schools, please visit the district website.  

You can find more stories of success from Great Minds partner districts here.