A total of 48 individuals are listed in the document as having contributed, led by Joan Ferrini-Mundy and including Barbara Reys, Alan H. Schoenfeld and Douglas Clements.
These strands are divided into mathematics content (Number and Operations, Algebra, Geometry, Measurement, and Data Analysis and Probability) and processes (Problem Solving, Reasoning and Proof, Communication, Connections, and Representation).
The contents were based on surveys of existing curriculum materials, curricula and policies from many countries, educational research publications, and government agencies such as the U.S. National Science Foundation.
[citation needed] In 2006, NCTM issued a document called "Curriculum Focal Points" that presented the most critical mathematical topics for each grade in elementary and middle schools.
NCTM stated that "Focal Points" was a step in the implementation of the Standards, not a reversal of its position on teaching students to learn foundational topics with conceptual understanding.
[15] Contrary to the expectation of many textbook publishers and educational progressives, the 2006 Curriculum Focal Points strongly emphasized the importance of basic arithmetic skills in lower and middle grades.
They develop fluency with efficient procedures, including the standard algorithm, for multiplying whole numbers, understand why the procedures work (on the basis of place value and properties of operations), and use them to solve problems.Because most education agencies in the United States have adopted the NCTM recommendations to varying degrees, many textbook publishers promote their products as being compliant with the publishers' interpretations of the PSSM.