With maths education being highlighted by both Conservative and Labour at the recent political party conferences, what could the proposals and discussions mean for schools and teachers? Dr Thomas Hunt, Associate Professor in Psychology at the University of Derby, who leads the Mathematics Anxiety Research Group, discusses. Getting maths education right is essential. After all, maths attainment is related to all sorts of positive outcomes, including better health and earnings. In his speech a few months ago, the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, suggested that improved maths skills will support future economic growth, pointing towards a requirement for all students to study maths to 18. This was emphasised again more recently when he announced plans to introduce a new post-16 qualification – the Advanced British Standard (reinforced recently in the King’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament), including the compulsory study of some English and maths to 18.The Prime Minister has also spoken about the need to change the “anti-maths mindset” in the UK, targeting society’s negative view of maths. This seems at odds with reference to the UK climbing the international league tables in maths performance. Indeed, TIMMS data demonstrates this to be the case among primary school children in England, with a year-on-year rise in maths performance since 1995, and performance at both the primary and secondary school stage being greater than the world average. Nonetheless, these statistics do not marry up with the behaviour of upper secondary age pupils; according to a Nuffield Foundation study in 2010, in which 24 countries were compared, the number of 16-18 year-olds in England and Wales taking maths was far less than their international counterparts.This was further highlighted in a government blog earlier this year in which it was pointed out that many other countries ensure that students study some sort of maths post-16. As highlighted by National Numeracy, many adults do not believe that school maths prepared them well for maths in everyday life. Thus, there may be a disconnect between pre-adult (even pre-16) maths and the way in which maths is then used throughout adulthood. It is also worth considering the difference between maths and numeracy, with the latter being defined as the use of basic maths in real-life situations.Psychology + mathsPersonally, I welcome Rishi Sunak’s emphasis on mindset when debating maths education. However, the situation is far from simple. We need to be mindful of the range and complexities of the attitudes, emotions, and beliefs involved in successful maths education and beyond. For example, being motivated is clearly important when it comes to engaging with maths at school, but what do we mean by motivation exactly? Does the current education system adequately address motivation associated with a love of the subject compared to the desire to do well because it would help one progress to a desired job or course of study? I believe Psychology has more to add to the discussion.There is a wide array of academic literature to evidence that the range of positive and negative feelings and attitudes a person might have towards maths contributes greatly to their engagement, success, and continuation with it. Psychological factors such as resilience, self-concept, self-efficacy, growth mindset, and shame all play a vital role in maths education. In fact, our recent work showed that, across the three countries studied, having a growth mindset (the belief that one’s maths ability can be improved) was a predictor of less shame associated with one’s maths ability and performance.An expert group has been established by the government to advise what maths content is essential post-16. It is hoped that addressing post-16 maths education will support higher levels of numeracy within the adult population. However, discussion about post-16 maths could detract from a broader discussion around maths education, including math...
