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Location: Madrid, Spain / Number of students: 750
Grades using Innovamat: From PreK 1 to 7th grade/ Using Innovamat since: 2021
Colegio Santa Gema in Madrid is a multilingual school in which they respect the individualized learning of their students. Each student is unique in their capacities and abilities, that is, in their multiple intelligences. That’s why they decided to start using Innovamat in their math classrooms in 2021, from kindergarten to middle school.
The teachers of Santa Gema have noticed a great improvement in the learning of mathematics, especially because they are beginning to realize the agility and skills that students are acquiring which they did not have before. As Olaya Ibáñez, 3rd grade teacher, says:
“Innovamat is a curriculum that is really designed for the reality of a classroom.”
What stands out most about Innovamat is its capacity to integrate all children, regardless of their skill level in mathematics, when doing the suggested activities. Franjo de Miguel, a 5th and 6th grade teacher, says that “this curriculum is very successful for students that are having difficulties”. Raquel García, and elementary school coordinator, stresses the importance of not leaving any student out of the learning process: “It really welcomes all children, it integrates them and everyone feels part of the activity. No child is left out: neither those who go at a slower pace, nor those who go at a faster pace.”
Another notable aspect of their experience with the curriculum is that, thanks to Innovamat, students have a very wide range of strategies at their disposal which allows everyone to choose the one that best suits their needs. According to Olaya Ibáñez, “everyone decides where they are, what point they’re at and where they can move forward.” This makes them feel capable and like they are the protagonists of their own learning process.
Teachers also highlight the app as a resource that adapts to the learning process of each student, suggesting activities adapted to their level, as Franjo de Miguel says: In the process, everyone works up to whichever point they reach. During group sessions, classmates themselves help students who fall a little behind and bring them up to speed. And then, when they have to work individually using the app, the program itself adapts activities to them.
In addition, the reports teachers receive weekly are very helpful, as they allow them to make an individualized assessment of each student and reinforce specific areas where they need more help, as Gema Cofrades, coordinator and kindergarten teacher, says.
It is normal for many families to find understanding the curriculum difficult at first as it represents a big change from what we learned when we were at school and from what they have seen their children do so far.
Some teachers at Santa Gema told us that although they were very convinced about the change they were going to make because it would be an improvement in many aspects, it wasn’t particularly obvious at the beginning.
It is often not easy for families to understand the considerable change that Innovamat brings to schools. Raquel García, elementary school principal and also the mother of a student at the school, commented, “I remember the first meetings we had with the families, they were very shocked by this new curriculum. In the end, this is a process of change for everyone and we have to accept that doubts, concerns and worries will arise, and that we at the school have to address them and support them”.
All the teachers are very clear on the fact that they are there to teach math to the children and provide support. For this reason, the school also supports families and explains to them how their children will work with mathematics from now on. In the end, it’s all about communicating, sharing and trusting each other.
