Why Your Core Math Curriculum Is Failing Your Students (And What Actually Works)

Districts are already making large financial investments into core programs. So why are they still buying more resources to make up for what their textbooks can’t do?
Let’s be honest about what’s happening in classrooms right now.

Traditional math textbooks adopted five years ago haven’t changed since. Teachers are drowning in supplemental tools: one for differentiation, another for assessment, a third for engagement, and more. None of them talk to each other. And somehow, students are still falling through the cracks.

Sound familiar?

The curriculum crisis nobody’s talking about

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: While technology has revolutionized how students learn, core curricula are stuck in the past. We’re still clinging to one-size-fits-all textbooks in a world where every student learns differently.

The problems are glaring:

Traditional textbooks can’t differentiate. Every student receives the same instruction, whether they’re struggling with basics, ready to sprint ahead, or anywhere in between.

Your edtech stack is a Frankenstein’s monster. Districts have cobbled together multiple products to fill the gaps. The result? Teachers juggling five different tools, students confused by inconsistent interfaces, and district leaders handling a logistics nightmare.

New teachers are not adequately set up for success. Teacher shortages mean less experienced educators are delivering math instruction without adequate support. A textbook and pacing guide aren’t enough when managing 25 students with vastly different needs.

Differentiation is theoretically important but practically impossible. Traditional curricula expect teachers to create differentiated instruction from scratch—a task that’s simply not sustainable.

What if differentiation wasn’t optional—But built in?

This is where most articles tell you to “implement more interventions” or “use data better.” But that’s not the problem. The problem is that your core curriculum was never designed for how teaching and learning actually happen today.

Enter Takeoff by IXL™—the breakthrough core curriculum with differentiation in its DNA.

Imagine a math program where:

• 

  Every lesson includes embedded support and ready-to-use enrichment options

• Assessments automatically group students by learning needs and provide targeted materials for reteaching
• Online practice adapts in real time to each student, adjusting difficulty levels automatically
• Everything lives in one integrated platform—lesson plans, print materials, assessments, adaptive practice, and data insights working together seamlessly

Differentiation, solved

If anyone knows how to crack the differentiation code, it’s IXL—the personalized learning platform trusted by 17 million students worldwide. For more than 25 years, IXL has perfected the technology that meets students exactly where they are. Now, that same expertise powers Takeoff by IXL, the first and only core curriculum intentionally built for continuous differentiation.

Takeoff includes a universe of educational tools—adaptive practice, actionable analytics, engagement tools, and more—all connected directly to daily core instruction.

It weaves differentiation into every lesson, every assessment, and every moment of teaching and learning.

Here’s how it works:

Before each lesson, Takeoff suggests readiness skills students can work on to prepare.

During lessons, teachers get real-time guidance on scaffolds, misconceptions to look out for, and extension activities—with one-click access to classroom engagement tools right within the lesson flow.

After instruction, differentiated skill practice on IXL adapts to meet all students where they are, seamlessly connected to that day’s learning objectives.

After unit assessments, Takeoff automatically creates small groups based on which objectives students need reteaching in—and provides the instructional materials to address those gaps. No more staring at test results wondering what to do next.

One platform with everything you need

Built from the ground up as a complete, cohesive teaching and learning ecosystem, Takeoff includes:

✓ Daily lesson plans
✓ Student workbooks
✓ Adaptive online practice
✓ Built-in assessments
✓ Actionable analytics and reporting
✓ Video tutorials and engagement tools
✓ Multi-language support

Everything teachers need in one place. No juggling multiple vendors or wrestling with different interfaces.

In closing

Your current curriculum asks teachers to do the impossible: meet every student’s needs with materials designed for the mythical “average” learner.

Takeoff by IXL proves that core curriculum can be both rigorous and personalized, structured and flexible, teacher-friendly and student-centered. It’s differentiation not as an add-on, but as the foundation.

Because all students deserve instruction that meets them where they are. And every teacher deserves tools that make that possible.

It’s differentiation, solved.

Ready to see how Takeoff transforms math instruction? Visit takeoffbyixl.com to preview a sample lesson. Reach out at takeoff@ixl.com or 855.255.8800 to start a strategic pilot.