As a Ph.D. student in Educational Research and Statistics at Georgia State, I have followed the Concerned Parents for a Better Fayette Education with increasing interest.

To become more personally informed, I conducted my own research on the University of Chicago Math Program and how curriculum change has evolved throughout history. Some of the more important results of this research follows:

1. The tradition of control of formal curriculum lies uncontested with state and local officials. The responsibility of dictating this curriculum was entrusted to these organizations, deemed by the public to be experts in their field. School administrators view external efforts to institute change as an encroachment on their responsibilities and a question of their judgement in decision making. Media publicity draws further attention to their professional responsibilities.

2. The challenge to curriculum reform in California unveiled a new age in rallying community support. Easy access to the Internet has created a global community capable of instantaneous communication and unlimited resources. Countless websites have been established to exchange ideas and provide access to information regarding the concerns of other school communities.

3. There is no statistical research that supports the University of Chicago Math Program. More importantly, Gov. Pete Wilson of California called for a "return to the basics" math reform and enacted legislation that mandated computational skills after math scores dropped as a result of Everyday Math.

4. In the course of my research I had the privilege of meeting with Amy Riley. Not only is she well educated, her exhaustive research and knowledge of math education rivals that of any administrator or teacher that I have met.

On Sept. 21, the Concerned Parents for a Better Fayette Education made a formal presentation to the Board of Education. This presentation was followed by testimony from several teachers and a student from Sandy Creek High School who support the University of Chicago Math Program.

One could easily take this to represent the overwhelming opinion of all teachers in the Fayette County system; however, this would be careless.

I caution the reader to scrutinize the information from both sides with critical review.

Has a survey of teachers been conducted to determine the proportion of teachers that support the curriculum? If so, what was the response rate of this survey? If teachers did not complete the survey, why didn't they? What were the questions on the survey and did teachers fear repercussions?

Have ITBS scores improved since the curriculum has been implemented? How are ITBS scores reported? Have both problem solving and computation scores been reported? (I could easily report improvement in my golf game if I did not count my putts).

These are not leading questions in which I know the answers, rather questions that need to be considered when developing an opinion.

Without more complete information from the professionals who work with this program on a daily basis, I am unable to take a firm position for or against the Chicago Math/Everyday Math Program.

Having taught math at West Point for three years, substituted in several Fayette County high schools, and tutored math over the last year, it is my observation that basic math skills have declined. Many students have become dependent on calculators and are unable to reduce simple fractions such as 6/9.

The Fayette County schools system is blessed with some of the most caring and gifted educators and administrators in the country. Fayette County parents are active and concerned with quality education for its children.

This is not a political issue contrasting the administration against the Concerned Parents group. Together the educators and parents can work together to improve the quality of our children's education. Let's focus the positive energy of Amy Riley and the Concerned Parents group to introduce positive changes in our curriculum.

Everyday Math has some redeeming qualities. It makes math fun. However, all curriculums have strengths and shortcomings. High school teachers have the time and expertise to augment any curriculum with their own resources.

From my experience, high school teachers exchange ideas and enhance curriculum shortcomings in an effective manner. Many elementary school teachers are not afforded the same opportunity. They are responsible for teaching numerous subjects across a diverse range of subjects.

According to the 1996-97 Georgia Report card, Braelinn Elementary School scored in the 93rd percentile for third grade math on the ITBS. The next highest school in Fayette County was Oak Grove Elementary at the 80th percentile. How do we account for this vast difference?

I challenge the county to assemble its finest teachers from each grade and allow these gifted professionals to tailor the county math curriculum to enhance its shortcomings. I am confident that these teachers are capable of producing an extraordinary curriculum that improves both computational skills and problem solving throughout Fayette County.