In April, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) released its 2025 Teacher Prep Review. The headline is clear: most aspiring elementary teachers are still not getting the preparation they need to teach math effectively.

NCTQ examined 1,110 undergraduate and graduate programs across the country and found that only 20% fully meet the organization’s expectations for elementary mathematics content. While this marks a slight improvement from previous years, the gap between what elementary teachers need to know and what many are actually being taught remains significant.

Why it matters: Elementary math isn’t just about rote memorization and procedural understanding—it’s about building conceptual knowledge for mathematical thinking that supports learning across grades and subjects. Yet, many programs still fail to ensure their candidates master critical content areas like numbers and operations, algebraic thinking, and data analysis.

Notable Findings
  • Only 1 in 5 teacher prep programs are providing sufficient coursework in essential math content areas.
  • About half of the reviewed programs neglect one or more crucial topics, such as geometry or algebra.
  • Programs housed in colleges of arts and sciences generally outperform those in schools of education when it comes to math preparation.

The stakes are high. Research shows that elementary math achievement is a strong predictor of later academic success—not just in math, but in reading and other subjects as well. Moreover, student outcomes are strongly linked to the quality of their teachers’ preparation. The most recent NAEP scores show widening achievement gaps and minimal gains in math.  

What’s next: This report calls on state policymakers, accreditors, and institutions of higher education to strengthen program requirements, improve alignment with state standards, and ensure transparency in course content.

Zoom In

The National Math Improvement Project is one of many efforts to improve math achievement across the U.S. The project brings together several of the nation’s largest school districts and leading education organizations that are thinking deeply about the connection between teacher math content knowledge, teacher pedagogical knowledge, and student success.

This year’s NMIP findings show improving math outcomes starts early and that districts aren’t waiting for EPPs to meet the demand. For example, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and Miami-Dade partnered with higher ed institutions to deepen teacher content and pedagogical knowledge. 

  • CPS has developed their own microcredential for teachers for Algebra I: “Since 2004, CPS has offered a local microcredential that supports deeper content knowledge for teachers in the middle grades and prepares them to teach algebra in their schools. The coursework—offered in partnership with the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois Chicago, and DePaul University—can be applied toward a master’s degree and is connected to payscale increases.”
  • Miami-Dade County Public Schools partners with University of Florida to deepen teacher’s “grade-band content and [build] their capacity to deliver high-quality, aligned instruction.”

This article is sourced from Whiteboard Notes, our weekly newsletter of the latest education policy and industry news read by thousands of education leaders, investors, grantmakers, and entrepreneurs. Subscribe here.