Mathematics Tracker

Which States Are Overhauling Math Education? See Our Tracker

By Evie Blad, Sarah Schwartz, Stephen Sawchuk & Maya Riser-Kositsky — July 31, 2026 1 min read
 MJ20749
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

After a major push across the United States to overhaul how schools teach reading, many states have expanded their focus to math.

States have adopted a flurry of math-related laws and policies in recent years. These include measures like requiring schools to create individual learning plans for struggling students, setting new teacher training requirements, and requiring districts to automatically enroll students in advanced math courses if they score at grade level on state tests.

Alabama kicked off the trend in 2022 when it passed a comprehensive math bill that mimics features included in many states’ “science of reading” laws. It includes regular math screenings for elementary school students, coaches to improve math instruction, state-approved curricula, and changes to teacher preparation.

In the time since, many other states have passed bills and state board policies that address concerns about sagging math achievement, though so far many are less expansive and detailed than their corresponding reading laws. Fewer have addressed changes to teacher certification, for example. And none of the laws appears to include a grade-retention element, as is common with reading.

And although some states specifically required changes in line with “evidence based” math practices, there is less consensus about what that looks like in math than in reading.

The database does not include policies passed prior to 2022. Some states had already adopted discrete measures—like automatic enrollment in advanced math courses—prior to that year.

As of July 2026, 22 states have passed laws or implemented new policies related to math education since 2022, according to an Education Week analysis.   

See below for the requirements of each state’s legislation or policy. Hover over the category names below for details on these requirements.

Glossary of Terms

We've compiled some quick definitions for each category.

Teacher preparation: Requires institutes of higher education and/or teacher-preparation programs to review their course offerings or instructional approaches; requires changes that would bring instructional approaches in line with evidence-based math practices; requires courses to cover certain topics related to early numeracy.


Teacher certification or license renewal: Requires preservice teachers to pass a test demonstrating their knowledge of evidence-based math instruction, or requires in-service teachers to be taught evidence-based math methods to renew their teaching license.


Professional development or coaching: Requires teachers and/or other educators to undergo professional development in evidence-based math instruction and/or institutes a program of instructional coaching.


Assessment: Puts forth requirements for screening students to identify math difficulties or measure math progress, or mandates that schools use specific assessments or undergo a review process when selecting these assessments.


Materials: Puts forth requirements for the type of curricula and other materials that schools can use to identify math difficulties or measure math progress, or mandates that schools undergo a review process when selecting these materials.


Instruction and/or intervention: Requires teachers to use specific instructional methods or provide a specific type or frequency of intervention for students struggling with math.


Access to Algebra 1/advanced math: Automatically enrolls some students in an advanced math course and/or in Algebra 1 in middle school.


Minimum instructional time: Sets minimum daily or weekly time requirements for math instruction in specified grades.


When did states pass these laws?

Search for a state below to learn more about its legislation or policy.


Contact information

For media or research inquiries about this data, contact library@educationweek.org.

How to cite this page

Blad, Evie, Sarah Schwartz, Stephen Sawchuk, and Maya Riser-Kositsky. (2026, July 31). Which States Are Overhauling Math Education? See Our Tracker. Education Week. Retrieved Month Day, Year from https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/which-states-are-overhauling-math-education-see-our-tracker/2026/07

Hyon-Young Kim, Senior Digital News Specialist contributed to this article.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Grow Leaders, Keep Teachers: Leadership Development as a Staffing Strategy
Find out how to turn leadership development into a staffing strategy and grow your next generation of school leaders from within.
Content provided by Frontline Education
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Teaching Webinar
Closing the Practice Gap: Essential Insights for Leaders
Three instructional experts will share strategies for making students’ reading and math practice more engaging and impactful this year.
Content provided by Renaissance

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Mathematics When Teachers Fear Math, Their Students Suffer the Consequences
Elementary teachers tended to experience more math anxiety—and the effect on student learning can compound.
4 min read
Fifth grade teachers from left, Traci Meyers, Autumn Mayer, Lakisha Smith and Allison King take part in training to teach math at West Forest Intermediate School in Opelika, Ala., on Nov. 4, 2021.
Fifth grade teachers from left, Traci Meyers, Autumn Mayer, Lakisha Smith, and Allison King take part in training to teach math at West Forest Intermediate School in Opelika, Ala., on Nov. 4, 2021. New research suggests anxiety about teaching math could affect students' achievement in the subject.
Julie Bennett | preps@al.com via TNS
Mathematics Opinion Math Instruction Needs to Change. Here's How
A lot has changed in math education in the last decade. Here’s what the next 10 years may hold.
8 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Mathematics Opinion How to Embrace the 'Science of Math' Without Abandoning Your Existing Curriculum
Teachers can improve mathematics instruction with these straightforward changes.
Danielle K. Hankins
6 min read
A group of students lead by a teacher through an algebraic landscape. Guided learning of advanced math.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
Mathematics Teachers Want Their Math Curricula to Do More. Here's How
The Gates Foundation has awarded several grants focused on instructional "coherence" in math.
5 min read
 MJ20813
Details of math homework photographed in Annandale, Va. on June 8, 2026. Many teachers use multiple math programs in their classrooms—and the content doesn't always line up.
Marvin Joseph/Education Week