If you’ve been in education for a while, you know how new programs roll out, standards get revised, and the buzzwords change. But it doesn’t always feel like much is different in practice.

But every so often, something shifts in a real way. Not just in language, but in what (and how) we teach. That’s what we’re seeing with math right now.

We’re moving away from isolated procedures and toward real-world math, the kind that asks students to analyze situations, make assumptions, test solutions, and communicate their thinking. It’s not about memorizing formulas. It’s about making sense of the world, perhaps through developing formulas that become meaningful in a rich context.

And if that sounds familiar, it should. COMAP’s been supporting this approach for decades.

What is real-world math?

Real-world math means applied math. It’s not confined to the page. It thrives in messy, open-ended problems with multiple paths forward. It shows up in questions like:

• How can a city design safer intersections using traffic data?
• What’s the best way to distribute vaccines in a rural region?
• How should we rank sports teams fairly when not everyone plays the same number of games?

It’s what students tackle in COMAP’s MCM®/ICM® and HiMCM®/MidMCM contests every year. It’s math that matters because it’s connected to decisions people actually have to make.

It’s also math that builds skills students don’t even realize they’re developing at first: resilience, collaboration, critical thinking, and the ability to clearly explain their reasoning to others. Teachers often tell us that their students grow more from this one experience than from an entire semester of traditional instruction. The math modeling process doesn’t just teach content; it builds confidence.

Why real-world math is gaining momentum

This isn’t just a COMAP thing anymore. It’s becoming a national conversation.

Textbook studies show that fewer than 1% of U.S. middle school math problems involve real-world applications. That stat, from Education Week, has sparked serious reflection about what we’re asking students to do, and what we’re preparing them for.

At the same time, new efforts like the “Data Science 4 Everyone” campaign are pushing K-12 systems to rethink what math should look like in a data-driven world. Some states, like Maryland, are even restructuring their high school math sequences to combine algebra, statistics, and geometry in a more integrated, practical way. The State of Washington is also implementing modeling in an extensive way.

The goal? To help students see math as a tool they can use, not just a subject they have to pass.

More and more educators are seeing the benefits, too. When students engage in math modeling or work with authentic data sets, they stay engaged longer. They ask better questions. They see the relevance. And often, they surprise themselves with what they’re capable of.

COMAP has been doing this for decades 

Long before “applied learning” became a trend, COMAP was giving students real-world problems to solve. Every contest problem we publish is rooted in something that actually happens in the world, something messy, complex, and not easily Googled.

Students don’t just plug in numbers. They build models, defend their reasoning, and write papers that communicate their ideas clearly. They learn that math is a process, not just a product. It calls for creativity, iteration, and the kind of thinking that relies upon what we call the math modeling mindset.

Educators who use COMAP’s classroom modules know the same is true there. These problems don’t all come with tidy answers. They ask students to try things, get stuck, and figure out what to do next. It’s a productive struggle in math with a purpose. And it’s what prepares students not just for tests, but for life.

Want to bring more real-world math into your classroom?

If you’re already using COMAP’s contests or math modeling modules, you’re ahead of the curve. But if you’re just getting started, or looking for a way to dip your toes in, check out our Refresh for Relevance Challenge. It’s a way for educators to revisit classic COMAP problems and update them for today’s students.

Because real-world math isn’t going anywhere. And neither are we.