The Maryland State Board of Education's Education Policy Committee will consider the state's first comprehensive PreK-12 Mathematics Policy at its August 14, 2025 meeting, following the board's unanimous adoption of Version 2.5 on March 25, 2025. The committee materials, posted the day before the meeting under the title "Revised Maryland Mathematics Policy & Secondary Mathematics Program Request to Adopt," list the policy as an action item for 4:05 p.m., followed by a separate action on the Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Math at 4:25 p.m.
What the policy requires
The policy, described by the Maryland State Department of Education as the state's first statewide mathematics policy, sets a series of phased mandates for local education agencies. By the 2026-27 school year, all LEAs must implement a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) for math instruction. That framework structures support across three tiers: Tier I provides high-quality differentiated classroom instruction for all students, Tier II adds small-group support or enrichment, and Tier III delivers intensive, individualized support.
By the 2027-28 school year, every LEA must develop an accelerated math course progression that is evidence-based and gives students multiple opportunities to accelerate based on readiness and interest. Starting in grade 3, every school must offer an accelerated pathway that allows access to Integrated Algebra 1 by grade 8. All students entering grades 3 through 7 must be evaluated for math acceleration readiness at least once a year using multiple data points, and those who achieve the highest proficiency level on state assessments in grades 3 through 6 must be automatically placed into accelerated courses.
The policy also introduces a minimum daily requirement of 60 cumulative instructional minutes, or 300 weekly minutes, for all math courses in kindergarten through grade 8, beginning in the 2027-28 school year. That same year, Integrated Algebra 1 will be implemented for all first-time Algebra 1 students, followed by Integrated Algebra 2 in the 2028-29 school year with an aligned state assessment. The integrated curriculum combines algebra and geometry into a two-year sequence, a shift from the traditional sequential approach.
Beginning in the 2025-26 school year, LEAs must review scheduling policies to reduce or eliminate exclusionary tracking in math education. Schools must maintain heterogeneous math classrooms in grades PreK through 1, and in grades 2 through 5, schools should regularly regroup students based on MTSS structures.
Implementation timeline
The MSDE implementation timeline designates the 2025-26 school year for preparation, the 2026-27 school year for revised PreK-8 math standards and MTSS establishment, the 2027-28 school year for Integrated Algebra 1 and accelerated course access beginning in grade 3, and the 2028-29 school year for Integrated Algebra 2 with a corresponding state assessment.
Comparative precedent: Ohio's legislative approach
Maryland's administrative policy approach differs from Ohio's legislative route. Ohio Senate Bill 19, signed by the governor, requires school districts, community schools, and STEM schools to provide evidence-based academic intervention services free of charge to students who show limited skill on state assessments in math or English language arts, starting in the 2026-27 school year. The Ohio law also mandates high-dosage tutoring (at least three days a week or 50 hours over 36 weeks) and prohibits intervention from supplanting core instruction. Unlike Maryland's policy, which restructures curriculum and course pathways, Ohio's mandate focuses primarily on intervention rather than systemic curriculum restructuring.
Ohio House Bill 934, titled the "Science of Math Act," introduced in the same legislative session, overlaps significantly with SB 19's provisions and passed the Ohio Senate. Both Ohio bills require the state Department of Education and Workforce to evaluate core math curricula against research standards and publish a list of approved evidence-based intervention programs. That curriculum-vetting approach parallels Maryland's reliance on MSDE-published guidance documents and frameworks.
Research evidence cited in the policy
The MSDE acceleration guidance cites research identifying educational acceleration as one of the most effective practices for students ready for advanced mathematics, referencing the National Association for Gifted Children (2004), Assouline et al. (2015), and Colangelo et al. (2019) on Individualized Acceleration Plans. At the same time, the guidance notes that gaps from premature acceleration can hinder future success, citing Finkelstein et al. (2012), and recommends enrichment and conceptual extension as the first response before formal acceleration.
The policy document itself cites Gersten et al. (2009) to support the requirement that identified students receive supplemental instruction aligned to their needs through MTSS. The Math Student Support Guidance specifies that students identified for Tier II instruction should be evaluated at least bi-weekly and weekly for Tier III, using multiple measures of progress monitoring to determine intervention effectiveness.
Ohio's legislative analysis similarly grounds its intervention framework in MTSS and evidence-based intervention principles, requiring that academic intervention services align with curricula supported by research qualifying as tier two or higher under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. While both states rely on the same foundational research, Maryland's approach is administratively adopted, while Ohio's is legislatively mandated.