30 Middle Schools to Pilot OER Math Curricula

A California-based nonprofit is bringing its openly-licensed and standards-aligned mathematics curricula to 30 middle schools in five school districts this year. The curricula from Open Up Resources, developed in partnership with Illustrative Mathematics, aims to provide the schools with quality open educational resources (OER) at a better price than traditional publishers.

Open Up Resources launched earlier this week after raising $10 million in investments from its supporting philanthropic organizations. Prior to the launch it was called the K–12 OER Collaborative, an initiative founded by 13 states that wanted to create OER for K–12 mathematics and English language arts.

Middle schools were specifically selected to address a quality gap in the curriculum market. In a news release, Open Up Resources noted that “the majority of curricula for grades 6–8 were deemed to be unaligned to state standards, based on reviews by independent reviewer EdReports." As a result, the schools will be beta testing Open Up Resources' complete OER curricula, saving districts up to 80 percent overall (compared to the cost of adopting materials from traditional providers), and offering extensive support, including teacher training, customization services, low-cost printing and other resources to facilitate district-level adoption.

Later this year, it plans to debut OER that supports K–5 English language arts curriculum. Further information about the OER instructional materials and pilot program are available on the Open Up Resources site.

About the Author

Sri Ravipati is Web producer for THE Journal and Campus Technology. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • laptop screen displaying a typed essay, on a child

    McGraw Hill Acquires Essaypop Digital Learning Tool

    Education company McGraw Hill has announced the acquisition of Essaypop, a cloud-based writing tool that will enhance the former's portfolio of personalized learning capabilities.

  • glowing digital brain made of blue circuitry hovers above multiple stylized clouds of interconnected network nodes against a dark, futuristic background

    Report: 85% of Organizations Are Leveraging AI

    Eighty-five percent of organizations today are utilizing some form of AI, according to the latest State of AI in the Cloud 2025 report from Wiz. While AI's role in innovation and disruption continues to expand, security vulnerabilities and governance challenges remain pressing concerns.

  • The AI Show

    Register for Free to Attend the World's Greatest Show for All Things AI in EDU

    The AI Show @ ASU+GSV, held April 5–7, 2025, at the San Diego Convention Center, is a free event designed to help educators, students, and parents navigate AI's role in education. Featuring hands-on workshops, AI-powered networking, live demos from 125+ EdTech exhibitors, and keynote speakers like Colin Kaepernick and Stevie Van Zandt, the event offers practical insights into AI-driven teaching, learning, and career opportunities. Attendees will gain actionable strategies to integrate AI into classrooms while exploring innovations that promote equity, accessibility, and student success.

  • A child surrounded by glowing, fluid virtual patterns and holographic shapes, illuminated in a dark gradient environment of blue, purple, and pink.

    ClassVR Gets Expanded VR/AR Content Library

    Avantis Education has announced a new content library for its ClassVR virtual and augmented reality platform. Dubbed Eduverse+, the library features four content suites — EduverseAI, WildWorld, STEAM3D, and CareerHub — that can be tailored to suit a variety of educational levels.