HILLSBOROUGH: Grant sought to help development math teachers

By Eileen Oldfield, Staff Writer
   The district applied for $33,060 in state funds for professional development for the district’s third- to seventh-grade math teachers, through a state grant, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum Lisa Antunes said.
   ”Specifically, the grant address the importance of formative assessment tools in targeting instruction and professional development.” Dr. Antunes said. “We requested funds for professional development, substitutes for teachers to attend the professional development and supplies associated with the professional development.”
   At its Feb. 23 meeting, the Board of Education unanimously approved the district’s application for the New Jersey Department of Education’s Mathematics Intervention Consortium II grant.
   According to State Department of Education spokeswoman Beth Auerswald, funds will help pay for formative assessment — tests — to measure student performance during the school year.
   ”It’s a gauge of how much students have learned up to a certain point,” Ms. Auerswald said. “It’s typically a test, but there are some other ways to measure.”
   Since the state Department of Education offers the grant, the stipulations are not as strict as many federal grants, Dr. Antunes said.