The math wars continue to play out in court.”New math” quietly took another judicial blow on Friday–and this time it could affect curriculum across the state. The company that publishes the Discovering series lost a bid to have a court throw out a recommendation against the textbooks by the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Discovering series–which stresses open-ended problem solving rather than formula drills– is perhaps best known because of a lawsuit filed by University of Washington weather guru Cliff Mass and other traditional math supporters, who want to overturn the Seattle School District’s use of the series in high schools. In court, they pointed to a May memo by OSPI that informed districts around the state that there was only one math series that met state standards, and it wasn’t the Discovering books.Last Thursday, King County Superior Court Judge Julie Spector ruled that Seattle’s pick of the Discovering series was “arbitrary and capricious,” and ordered the district to review the decision. Discovering’s publisher, California-based Key Curriculum Press, was not involved in that suit. But all the while, the company was pursuing a different legal strategy by attacking the OSPI recommendation in Thurston County Superior Court. In a lawsuit against OSPI filed last June, the publishers charged that it was the state agency that was being “arbitrary and capricious.” The company said that OSPI’s recommendation against Discovering was based on a flawed study that expressed the biases of its authors. And because of that recommendation, the publisher said, one district in the state had already decided against using the Discovering series (though not Seattle, which charged ahead with the books), and others would likely follow suit. On Friday, Judge Thomas McPhee announced that he had decided for OSPI; he will present his complete ruling on Feb. 19. “That’s wonderful,” says Mass, upon being informed of the ruling, which he declared “really timely.” Had the decision gone the other way, he speculates, Seattle might feel justified in sticking with Discovering once the district concludes its review. Moreover, Mass notes, both the Bellevue and Issaquah school districts are now deciding whether they will adopt the Discovering series.Mass contends that despite OSPI’s recommendation against Discovering, the agency has not firmly and consistently spoken out against use of the books because of a “muzzling” effect by the lawsuit. He hopes that will change. OSPI spokesperson Nathan Olson denies that the agency has felt muzzled or will now do anything differently. Yet at least one district is looking for clearer direction about what books to use. Issaquah Superintendent Steve Rasmussen has asserted that that OSPI “continues to waffle” on the subject.Meanwhile, Key Curriculum’s attorneys say the company is considering an appeal of McPhee’s decision.