USC Researchers Find Positive Effect of Adopting Eureka Math² in Elementary Grades

Posted in: Aha! Blog > Eureka Math Blog > Student Achievement Research > USC Researchers Find Positive Effect of Adopting Eureka Math² in Elementary Grades

A study by researchers at the University of Southern California found positive effects of using the Eureka Math²^®curriculum in schools in North Carolina.

The USC researchers looked at math achievement in grade levels 3–5 in 107 schools in North Carolina.

They found that students who attended schools that adopted the Eureka Math² curriculum had bigger achievement gains than students in schools that did not adopt the curriculum.

Those gains were even more consistent—and could be seen when averaging across all grades—after the first year of adoption.

→ View the full research report.

KEY FINDING 1

In year 2 of implementation, significant EOG gains across all grades are observed for those adopting Eureka Math².

The effect is equivalent to roughly a difference of 11–13% in proficiency band.

EM2 Keyfinding 1

KEY FINDING 2

Despite performance drops often observed in implementation year one*, significant effects were realized in the first year of implementation for grades 3 and 5.

*Eddy, R. M., Hankel, N., Matelski, M. H., Cluff, A. L., Hunt, A., & Murphy, K. (2014, February). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Go Math! efficacy study year one final report.

EM2 Keyfinding 2

View the full research report.

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"When we chose a curriculum, we weren’t just introducing a set of lessons, we were embracing a philosophy of high expectations for students and teachers, critical thinking, and cultivating a deep understanding of mathematical concepts...
Implementing Eureka Math² with fidelity has become a powerful tool for them to reach that goal."
Dr. Charles Foust Chief Academic Officer New Hanover County Schools

Student in classroom EM2

Research Methodology

This study evaluates the impact of Eureka Math² curriculum adoption on student learning by comparing North Carolina End-of-Grade (EOG) math scores of students in grade levels 3 through 5 at adopting versus non-adopting schools. Researchers at the University of Southern California examined 107 schools that adopted Eureka Math² in 2022–2023 or 2023–2024, using matched sampling to establish a control group of comparable schools that did not adopt Eureka Math².

Research Findings

Among schools that have implemented for more than one year, significant EOG gains for Eureka Math² were observed across grade levels 3, 4, and 5. Despite performance drops often observed in implementation year one, significant effects were realized in the first year of implementation for grade levels 3 and 5, with a dramatic effect size for grade 5.

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Topics: Student Achievement Research