MATH BYTES

Left to right: Lori Bodner, Zach Korzyk MAT ’07, and Japheth Wood Photo by Nour Annan HRA ’23

ZACH KORZYK MAT ’07

As part of Bard’s Master of Arts in Teaching Program (MAT), students are asked to work in New York City schools for at least four years. Zach Korzyk MAT ’07 had studied computer science and math as an undergraduate and knew that he wanted to teach in those areas. Bard’s MAT Program helped make that possible.

“Taking Real Analysis and Abstract Algebra at Bard with [Continuing Associate Professor of Mathematics] Japheth Wood challenged me mathematically with rigorous proofs,” Korzyk says. “I remember being amazed at how much progress I was able to make in that class.” Around the same time, he started teaching 11th-grade Algebra 2 at Manhattan Village Academy in New York City. “Once I felt comfortable managing the class, I started to think about how to use my programming skills to help my students learn,” Korzyk says.

He noticed that his students had certain weaknesses in common. “I was giving homework assignments on paper, and many students would come to class saying that they didn’t know where to begin,” Korzyk says. “Some would copy from others, so they would get credit, but they were not actually learning how to solve the problems. One of the things I taught was the quadratic formula, a basic algorithm that my students were consistently making mistakes with. I knew that every single one of my students could master that algorithm if given the tools to focus on the problem.”

That thought inspired Korzyk to create an online portal where students could practice problem solving. In a few days, the first version of DeltaMath was ready for his students to access. “I made that basic program available, and the students’ results were available to me online.” Korzyk could see students’ process of learning and track how many times they repeated certain problems before they found the correct solution. “Everybody got that first DeltaMath assignment right!” Korzyk recalls. “The practice problems pointed them directly to their weaknesses and each student eventually got there.”

Over a few months in 2009, Korzyk developed problems for the DeltaMath portal covering about 50 other basic mathematical skills needed in Algebra 2. The following summer, he rewrote the entire program, adding the ability for any teacher to adjust the assignments to their needs. “In 2010–11, I had about 100 teachers signed up. It spread by word of mouth,” he says. At that time, most of the teachers using DeltaMath were in New York City, where Korzyk was teaching.

“In a math classroom at that level, the first part of each day’s class is usually focused on teaching the concepts and the later part on practicing,” says Korzyk. “With DeltaMath supporting their progress at home, I could spend more time in class developing students’ understanding.”

DeltaMath was free to users until 2020, but with two million students and tens of thousands of teachers using the portal, it became necessary for Korzyk to make some adjustments. “I was the only person working on it,” he says. “I knew I had to dedicate myself full time to DeltaMath and hire some people for programming, support for teachers, and other aspects of the business.” Korzyk left his teaching position three weeks before COVID-19 closed down most of the country. The need for online learning became intense, and DeltaMath was there to fill the need. Bard honored Korzyk with the 2022 John Dewey Award for Distinguished Public Service at the Bard College Awards Ceremony.