Algebra is no longer just for college-bound students. After a widespread push by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and teachers across the country, algebra is now a required part of most curricula. However, students' standardized test scores are not at the level they should be. NCTM's seventieth yearbook takes a look at the status of algebra in our schools and the changes that the algebra curriculum has gone through over the past several years. Also included are successful classroom practices for developing algebraic reasoning abilities in students and for improving their overall understanding of the subject. This book divides into five parts and twenty-one chapters. Part 1: "Historical Perspectives on Algebra in the Curriculum," contains: (1) A History of Algebra in the School Curriculum (Jeremy Kilpatrick and Andrew Izsak); and (2) The Shifting Landscape of School Algebra in the United States (Daniel Chazan). Part 2: "The Nature of Algebra and Algebraic Thinking," contains: (3) Algebra: Purpose and Empowerment (Abraham Arcavi); (4) Introducing Extensible Tools in High School Algebra (Al Cuoco); (5) Algebra: The Mathematics and the Pedagogy (Mark Saul); (6) The Three R's: Recursive Thinking, Recursion, and Recursive Formulas (Stanley J. Bezuszka and Margaret J. Kenney); and (7) Algebraic Thinking and Geometric Thinking (Thomas Banchoff). Part 3: "Studies on the Learning of Algebra," contains: (8) Patterns That Support Early Algebraic Thinking in the Elementary School (Elizabeth Warren and Tom J. Cooper); (9) Using Number Sentences to Introduce the Idea of Variable (Toshiakira Fujii and Maxwell Stevens); (10) Developing Algebraic Thinking through Explorations in Multiplication (Jae Meen Baek); (11) "What Is Your Theory? What Is Your Rule?" Fourth Graders Build an Understanding of Functions through Patterns and Generalizing Problems (Joan Moss; Ruth Beatty; Samantha Barkin; and Gina Shillolo); and (12) Developing Algebraic Thinking in Earlier Grades: Some Insights from International Comparative Studies (Jinfa Cai and John Moyer). Part 4: "Algebra in the Classroom," contains: (13) Algebra in Elementary School: A Japanese Perspective (Tad Watanabe); (14) Using a Model Approach to Enhance Algebraic Thinking in the Elementary School Mathematics Classroom (Beverly J. Ferrucci; Berinderjeet Kaur; Jack A. Carter; and Banhar Yeap); (15) Uncovering Variables in the Context of Modeling Activities (A. Susan Gay and Alyson R. Jones); (16) The Role of Context in Learning Beginning Algebra (Michael Tabach and Alex Friedlander); (17) Walk the Line: Making Sense of y = mx + b (Nancy Canavan Anderson); and (18) Digging Deeply into Intermediate Algebra: Using Symbols to Reason and Technology to Connect Symbols and Graphs (Rose Mary Zbiek and M. Kathleen Heid). Part 5: "Educating Teachers," contains: (19) Algebra in the Grades K-5 Classroom: Learning Opportunities for Students and Teachers (Deborah Schifter; Virginia Bastable; Susan Jo Russell; Lisa Seyferth; and Margaret Riddle); (20) Esther Marie Huntzinger Billings; (21) Analyzing Students' Work: A Context for Connecting and Extending Algebraic Knowledge for Teaching (Beth Herbel-Eisenmann; and Elizabeth D. Phillips).