Plenty of firms offer instructional or technology packages to boost weak math skills. America’s Choice—a leader in research-based curriculum development—is one of the few companies in the world that systematically investigated the best ways to teach math to American students.

Ramp-Up Mathematics is the result of almost 10 years of national and international research, development, and collaboration.

We analyzed the most recent results from the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), the Programme for International Student Assessment, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress. We compared U.S. standards, textbooks, and curriculum to those used in Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, and Finland— countries whose lowest-performing students excel at mathematics, year after year. We visited these countries to see teaching and learning in action. We discovered a common element among their instructional approaches that is missing from U.S. mathematics across the board: conceptual knowledge, which is the foundation for understanding advanced mathematics.

Based on these findings, America’s Choice math specialists worked in close collaboration with an international team of esteemed mathematicians to develop Ramp-Up Mathematics. Specifically designed to address the uniquely American issues students face in accelerating from arithmetic to algebra and beyond, Ramp-Up Mathematics integrates concepts, skills, and problem solving.

Straightforward explanations of mathematical concepts are hard to find in U.S. textbooks. So we created a unique Concept Book, a powerful reference for teachers and students that contains explanations and examples of virtually all the concepts that students need to master to be successful in advanced mathematics. Teachers and students can use the Concept Book for years to come to develop deeper insights and greater confidence with mathematical ideas.

Ramp-Up Mathematics is aligned to the rigorous mathematics standards created by Achieve, a bipartisan, nonprofit organization created by the nation’s governors and business leaders to help states raise academic standards, improve assessments, and strengthen accountability to prepare all young people for postsecondary education, work and citizenship.

Ramp-Up Mathematics is not just a course, but a complete instructional support system that gives every teacher the tools, training, support, and follow-up to help them effectively teach mathematics to striving students.

The formative assessment system—developed in partnership with the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER)—offers teachers a powerful means to identify problems in learning, monitor student progress, and differentiate instruction throughout the year. A range of formative assessments, including class profiles, weekly quizzes, and progress checks, allows teachers to target instruction to the individual needs of students. Summative assessment is provided through end-of-unit tests on key concepts. ACER, an international leader in educational assessment, helped to develop items for TIMSS and created PISA.