BROOKLYN, NY (April 3, 2024) – Amplify, a publisher of next-generation curriculum and assessment programs, today announced the acquisition of Math ANEX, a pioneering math assessment provider renowned for its innovative asset-based approach which focuses on analyzing students’ mathematical thinking.
Math ANEX will become a key feature of Amplify’s mCLASS Math product, helping educators go beyond the limitations of binary score reporting, explore deep analysis of student thinking, and build on the assets students showcase. This asset-based approach highlights students’ mathematical capabilities, showcasing evidence of what they can do, rather than making assumptions about what they cannot.
“Amplify mCLASS Math is going to represent a new standard for mathematics assessment. We aim to provide educators not only with reliable measures of student achievement and valid content priorities, but also with an asset-based system that analyzes student thinking and allows teachers to leverage their students’ mathematical strengths,” said Amplify’s Executive Vice President and Chief Academic Officer of STEM Jason Zimba. “The groundbreaking work of Patrick Callahan and his team at Math ANEX will help us develop assessments with unprecedented quality, relevance, and instructional value for teachers.”
Math ANEX’s main product, District Essential Math Indicators (or DEMI), is a digital math assessment designed to deeply analyze how students think about and approach mathematical problems. By identifying students’ often overlooked mathematical assets, DEMI helps inform more effective instructional action, empowering teachers to leverage and build on those existing student assets. The integration of DEMI into mCLASS Math will help Amplify further its ambitious vision for math assessments, including:
- assessment items that are carefully designed to prompt student thinking about essential math;
- additional assessment items that cover the remaining skills and standards;
- the ability to tag and auto-score open-ended student responses to analyze student thinking and performance;
- detailed insights and actionable instructional recommendations for teachers; and
- aggregate reports that inform district-level decision-making for administrators.
ANEX currently serves nearly 220,000 students across more than 15 U.S. school districts, including the San Diego Unified School District, the second largest district in California. Math ANEX founder and CEO Patrick Callahan will join Amplify to support the company’s math suite.
“When we founded Math ANEX, our goal was to revolutionize math assessment by extending beyond just correct/incorrect reporting, towards more comprehensive analysis of student thinking,” said Math ANEX CEO Patrick Callahan. “We understood from years of previous work that equipping educators with rich insights into student thinking was one of the most powerful ways to catalyze learning in mathematics. Joining the Amplify team pairs us with the expertise and resources to share this major paradigm shift in math assessment in ways that reverberate throughout the entire education system.”
About Amplify
A pioneer in K–12 education since 2000, Amplify is leading the way in next-generation curriculum and assessment. Our core and supplemental programs in ELA, math and science engage all students in rigorous learning and inspire them to think deeply, creatively and for themselves. Our formative assessment products help teachers identify the targeted instruction students need to build a strong foundation in early reading and math. All of our programs and services provide educators with powerful tools that help them understand and respond to the needs of every student. Today, Amplify serves more than 15 million students in all 50 states and on six continents. For more information, visit Amplify.com.
About Math ANEX
Founded in 2021 by Patrick Callahan and Jeremy Thiesen, Math ANEX (short for ANalyzing EXplanations) is a math assessment provider that helps schools and districts implement asset-based tools and practices. Math ANEX assessments go far beyond scoring correct/incorrect answers by analyzing how students think about and approach mathematics. Our objective is to uncover insights into student thinking, identify what students are doing well, and support teachers in building on those existing strengths. Math ANEX uses an asset-based lens to analyze what mathematics students understand, how they apply that knowledge in various situations, and how they communicate their reasoning.
Contact: Kristine Frech; media@amplify.com
