Members of the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) met on Sept. 17 to take action regarding the 2025 Mathematics Instructional Materials for K-8 and Personal Finance Curriculum Guide.
Following roughly two years of work on the instructional materials adoption process for K-8 math, which included submissions from publishers, review periods and opportunities for public comment, the Mathematics Subject Matter Committee moved to recommend 64 programs to the full commission.
The recommended programs can be viewed here. They include all titles with the exception of Pathway2Careers’ Algebra 1, Savvas Learning Company, LLC’s Envision+ California Integrated Mathematics 1, and TPS’ Steam into Big Ideas Math 1, which were not recommended by their respective review panels for various reasons detailed in their individual reports.
During the public comment period, where roughly a dozen people shared their thoughts, one speaker suggested that reviewer commentary of the programs be synthesized and published for districts so they can make the best choices for their local context. Another commenter urged more resources, such as professional development opportunities, be made available to assist with implementation.
Ultimately, the commission approved the recommended programs, which will be forwarded to the State Board of Education (SBE) for public comment and potential adoption in November.
Chair Charice Guerra noted that the time and care spent on this project should ensure “that school districts will have a wide variety of quality choices when selecting instructional materials aligned to the content standards and curriculum frameworks adopted by the State Board.”
The Personal Finance Subject Matter Committee also convened and recommended to the full commission that the draft 2026 Personal Finance Curriculum Guide move forward for a 30-day public review and comment period; revisions that reflected feedback from the IQC’s July meeting had been incorporated. Some of those changes included adding more guidance on supporting multilingual and long-term English learners as well as examples of how artificial intelligence can be used as a tool for financial research and planning. The draft can be accessed via the agenda.
The curriculum guide is being created in response to Assembly Bill 2927 (2024), which directs high schools to offer a personal finance course by the 2027–28 academic year, with course completion becoming a graduation requirement beginning with the Class of 2031.
The full commission approved the public review of the draft, which will take place Oct. 1-31. In March, the draft will come before the IQC again as it considers recommending it to the SBE for action in May 2026.
In other news from the meeting:
- Commissioners heard an update on the launch of the Native American Studies Model Curriculum, developed pursuant to 2021’s AB 167, which happened earlier this month. Materials are available here. The initiative was led by the Humboldt and San Diego county offices of education in partnership with respected California Native American scholars and many collaborators who weighed in throughout the development process. The free, web-based curriculum includes 150 lessons for grades TK-5, 100 lessons for grades 6-8 and 164 lessons for high school with corresponding teaching strategies and professional development resources.
- Ananya Akkaraju, a senior at Dublin Unified School District’s Dublin High School, was sworn in as the IQC’s student commissioner. She will serve through June 30, 2026.
A recording of the meeting will be available here. The IQC is scheduled to come together next on Nov. 12-13.
