The Report Summary Service (RSS) is a low-to-no-pain way for educators, policymakers, and business leaders to get a sense of the purpose and contents of key reports on mathematics (and, sometimes, science) education. The summaries are designed to:

  • reduce lengthy reports to 2-4 pages
  • present the gist of the full reports in a standard, but flexible, format
  • provide an overview of each report's structure, conclusions, and recommendations
  • identify and briefly describe each report's publisher
  • provide a web address from which the full report can be downloaded or purchased

Summaries do not evaluate a report's methodology, conclusions, or recommendations, but some do include cross-references to supporting or conflicting reports.

RSS items are prepared by Bob Kansky (), a faculty member of the Science & Mathematics Teaching Center (SMTC)* at the University of Wyoming. Reports selected for summarizing cover a wide range of issues such as teacher/teaching quality, seamless P-16 education systems, impact and opinion regarding NCLB, teacher supply/demand and retention, comprehensive teacher induction programs, education policy proposals, proposals for the mathematical education of K-12 teachers, and surveys of high school and college students that assess their degree of effort and their feelings about the school environment. Additional topics are being added to the mix over time.

Any summary may be forwarded to other websites or individuals without requesting permission from the SMTC or NCSM. To shield SMTC, NCSM, and any user from blame for errors of misstatement or misinterpretation made in the process of preparing a summary, each includes a "Caveat Emptor" section in which the summary's author accepts responsibility and begs forbearance.

* The Science & Mathematics Teaching Center (SMTC) at the University of Wyoming was established in 1970 as a joint enterprise of the College of Education, College of Arts & Sciences, and College of Engineering. In collaboration with the public schools, professional organizations, state government, and business community, the SMTC designs and executes programs, conferences, and activities intended to improve K-12 teaching and learning of mathematics and science and to ensure students' successful transition from high school to higher education and the workplace.