tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/maths-teachers-25507/articlesmaths teachers – The Conversation2023-12-18T12:08:43Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2186522023-12-18T12:08:43Z2023-12-18T12:08:43ZRishi Sunak wants more maths at school – but finding the teachers will be hard when university departments are closing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565256/original/file-20231212-29-i8mtw0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6359%2C5774&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-female-student-writing-equation-on-1131701174">Jacob Lund/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Oxford Brookes University recently <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/music-and-maths-courses-close-part-oxford-brookes-cuts">announced</a> it will no longer be offering mathematics degrees. This follows reported <a href="https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/120416/pdf/">reductions or proposed cuts</a> at other universities. </p>
<p>This is a problem for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s vision for improved maths skills across the nation. Sunak has laid out a vision for young people to study <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-outlines-his-vision-for-maths-to-18">maths to age 18</a>. The goal is to ensure that “every young person has the maths skills they need to succeed”.</p>
<p>This focus on maths was also evident in chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s 2023 autumn statement. This included funding for a <a href="https://rss.org.uk/news-publication/news-publications/2023/general-news/government-funding-announced-for-an-academy-for-ma/">national academy of mathematical sciences</a> to build links between mathematicians in education, academia, industry and government.</p>
<p>But the success of the prime minister’s vision, and the health of mathematics education more generally, rests largely on specialist maths teachers with a mathematics degree. These teachers are needed to educate young people in maths up to the age of 18. They teach the maths skills young people need to go on to study the subject further and use it in their future jobs. </p>
<p>But there is a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2023/apr/17/shortage-of-teachers-will-be-a-big-maths-problem-for-rishi-sunak">chronic shortage</a> of specialist mathematics teachers in schools – and the university maths education that trains these teachers is under threat. </p>
<h2>University maths under threat</h2>
<p>The cuts in maths teaching at universities has resulted in a new phenomenon: <a href="https://www.protectpuremaths.uk/news/broken-promise-on-maths-puts-science-plans-in-peril">maths deserts</a>. The closing of maths departments at universities that often serve their local population means that many, not just aspiring maths teachers, can no longer study mathematics beyond A-level in their local region. </p>
<p>Students with lower A-level results or from low-income families who are more likely to be living at home while studying at their local university, are disproportionately affected by maths deserts. And it creates a negative feedback loop that sees diminishing numbers going into maths teaching. This further erodes secondary schools’ ability to provide high-quality mathematics education.</p>
<p>Past president of the London Mathematical Society Ulrike Tillmann <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/blog/uk-cannot-afford-cut-m-stem">warned that maths deserts</a> will turn post A-level mathematics education into “an almost exclusively high-tariff, big-city degree” essentially concentrated at large Russell Group universities. Moreover, graduates with degrees like this are less likely to pursue <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-are-so-many-graduates-shunning-teaching-pay-but-not-bonuses-could-be-the-answer-216963">teaching as a career</a>. </p>
<h2>Protecting the discipline of mathematics</h2>
<p>The importance of mathematics cannot be overstated, both now and for the future. Mathematics underpins almost all technological development in society, from cryptography and information security through to artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. </p>
<p>There is a <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/fight-save-pure-maths-only-24697612">trend for universities</a> across the world to offer degrees in data science and AI. But a rigorous grounding in mathematics is required to ensure graduates are best equipped to meet future challenges in areas such as quantum computing or AI. This means that mathematics still needs to be taught as a discipline on its own, rather than being subsumed into seemingly more “job-ready” disciplines.</p>
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<img alt="Workbook showing equations to solve" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565266/original/file-20231212-15-deb5vi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Good teaching of maths at school needs specialist maths teachers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/handwriting-mathematics-quadratic-equation-on-examination-2154251415">Mehaniq/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>The same point applies to training future maths teachers. There is a world of difference between having a specialist teacher who loves the discipline of mathematics and is passionate about communicating it to their students, and one simply teaching out of a textbook. The former is crucial in ensuring a new generation of students go on to become excellent maths teachers and inspire future generations.</p>
<p>We need to equip our young people to manage the challenges of a rapidly shifting world. If we are to tackle challenges ranging from climate change to the explosion of AI in society and environmental resource management, then a rigorous education in mathematics – the subject <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/jul/11/pure-folly-turing-family-join-fight-to-save-blue-skies-maths-from-neglect">Alan Turing considered</a> a combination of intuition and ingenuity – is essential.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218652/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Neil Saunders does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>University maths departments are shrinking or closing.Neil Saunders, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics, University of GreenwichLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1718272021-12-12T19:09:44Z2021-12-12T19:09:44ZTeacher gender bias is real and has lasting effects on students’ marks and study choices<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436822/original/file-20211209-13-1hrhvhq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=50%2C0%2C5615%2C3741&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Two important patterns in education are true world-wide. First, females outperform males in most subjects, and boys <a href="https://www.school-news.com.au/news/study-reveals-patterns-in-stem-grades-of-girls-versus-boys/">do not outperform</a> girls in high school maths and physics. Second, more females than males enrol in higher education. However, female enrolments in science, technology, mathematics and engineering (STEM) degrees are disproportionately low.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w26021">My research</a> with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Lavy">Professor Victor Lavy</a> has shown teacher gender bias at least partly explains these low enrolments. We measured this bias in an innovative way based on how teachers graded different sets of students. We tracked the effects over many years, showing this bias distorts students’ grades in school and their post-school study choices.</p>
<p>We also found an association with teaching quality: the most effective teachers have a gender-neutral attitude.</p>
<h2>What did the study look at?</h2>
<p>There is <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4955357/">evidence</a> that beliefs about a specific group can determine individuals’ behaviours toward members of that group. And these behaviours, whether conscious or unconscious, may affect outcomes for the individuals exposed to them. So we explored the question: if you have a pro-boy maths teacher, how does it affect students’ performance in the subject a year later and their likelihood of enrolling in a maths degree two years later?</p>
<p>To answer this question, we used administrative data from Greece that match students, teachers and classrooms. Our study sample included more than 400 teachers from 21 high schools over eight years. The data record the progress of students from grade 10 through to grade 12, and are linked with university admission. </p>
<p>Thus, we can see students’ trajectory, including results in tests in year 11, standardised high-stakes exams in grade 12, attendance, the quality of the tertiary institution they enrol in, as well as degree choices.</p>
<h2>How was teacher bias measured?</h2>
<p>To measure teacher gender bias we exploited the difference between two tests that every student takes in all subjects in grade 11. One test is external, graded by an external examiner, and student names and thus gender are concealed. For the other test, graded by a school teacher, student names and their gender are revealed. </p>
<p>These tests cover the same curriculum and examine the same skills. Both tests are high-stakes, because results count for university admission two years later. </p>
<p>We calculated gender differences in outcomes in the two tests for each class a teacher taught in the sample. This measure shows whether teachers do consistently give higher or lower grades when they know the genders of students (compared to the external assessors who do not know this). In this way, we could identify a teacher’s gender biases in grading. </p>
<p>We were able to track outcomes for teachers over the eight years to get a persistent measure of their bias in different classes with different sets of students. We found teacher gender biases exist and are persistent. A teacher who acts in one class in a pro-boy way is very likely to act in the same way in a different class even seven or eight years later. </p>
<p>Our findings indicate these biases are deeply rooted in teachers’ attitudes and behaviours. Only 15% of teachers were gender-neutral in their behaviour. </p>
<p>Many teachers favoured boys, and many teachers favoured girls, with these behaviours varying by subjects. For instance, there was more pro-boy grading behaviour by teachers in algebra rather than in history or ancient Greek. </p>
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<h2>Teacher biases affect students a lot</h2>
<p>We then investigated the impacts of these biases on students’ maths grades in high school and on university admission. We found lasting effects. Male students who had a pro-boy maths teacher in grade 11 did better in maths in grade 12. The opposite happened to female students in their maths class – they did significantly worse the next year. </p>
<p>Studies from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775718307714">France</a> and <a href="https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S0047272708000418?token=4A28F6AD5D1ADE2B019CAC4DA9844F6F3C4195AC53454F417AAAD30ABB5847239C25E1215F8B73420D1E56DE6E998DDE&originRegion=us-east-1&originCreation=20211206122122">Israel</a> found a similar pattern. However, these studies used a weaker definition for teacher gender biases and could not follow the same teacher over time.</p>
<p>Using detailed student attendance data, we also found students with teachers biased in favour of their gender are less likely to miss classes without a reason and less likely to be expelled from the class. This suggest students exposed to biased teachers might be less motivated to attend class or less engaged with learning.</p>
<p>After school, teacher biases continue to have a significant effect on students’ probability of enrolling in tertiary education, quality of university and study program. These effects are similar for males and females. </p>
<p>However, only for female students do teacher biases have a significant effect on the chosen field of study. Female students who had pro-boy teachers in maths or physics in grade 11 were less likely to enrol in university maths or physics courses two years later. Teacher gender biases seem to have little effect on male students’ degree choices. </p>
<p>This could be partially explained by a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejsp.440">discouragement effect</a> on girls that lowers their self-confidence and their beliefs in their abilities and prospects of success. </p>
<h2>The impacts are long-term</h2>
<p>Teacher gender biases seem to have longer-term implications for females, affecting their career prospects and earnings.</p>
<p>In Australia, only <a href="https://www.industry.gov.au/data-and-publications/stem-equity-monitor/university-enrolment-and-completion-in-stem-and-other-fields">35% of university degrees in STEM disciplines</a> are awarded to women. Although <a href="https://www.wgea.gov.au/publications/higher-education-enrolments-and-graduate-labour-market-statistics">58% of students</a> in higher education are females, the rates are much lower in STEM subjects: 40% in architecture and building, 17% in information technology and 16% in engineering and related technologies. </p>
<p>These STEM degrees are associated with high salaries. This means women are underrepresented in high-paying occupations. This trend is true for most <a href="https://www.oecd.org/gender/data/why-dont-more-girls-choose-stem-careers.htm">OECD countries</a>.</p>
<h2>Gender-neutral teachers are more effective</h2>
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<p>Our final important finding is that the most effective teachers have gender-neutral attitudes. This suggests less effective teachers can harm their students twice: first by being ineffective and second by discriminating against one of the genders. </p>
<p>From a policy perspective, training that improves teacher quality will also likely reduce gender discrimination in schools.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171827/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rigissa Megalokonomou undertook the research discussed in this article with Professor Victor Lavy of the University of Warwick and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.</span></em></p>Research tracking teachers, classes and their grades over many years shows gender bias has long-term impacts on students’ performance and their post-school study choices.Rigissa Megalokonomou, Lecturer in Economics, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1611002021-05-24T21:16:33Z2021-05-24T21:16:33Z1 in 4 Australian year 8s have teachers unqualified in maths — this hits disadvantaged schools even harder<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402276/original/file-20210524-19-10vv69l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-students-writing-reading-exam-answer-1062306728">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Almost one in four (23%) Australian year 8 students were being taught maths in 2018 by teachers whose major qualification was in a field other than maths, <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/timss_2019/4/">new analysis</a> reveals. </p>
<p>Internationally, on average, just one in ten year 8 equivalent students are taught maths by such teachers. </p>
<p>The analysis of Australia’s participation in the 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) — an international assessment — was released today by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). </p>
<p>The above figures have remained much the same since the 2015 <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/timss_2015/2/">TIMSS data</a> collection.</p>
<p>When qualified teachers are assigned to teach subjects and year levels they have not studied at a tertiary level, this is known as out-of-field teaching. TIMSS also shows a large achievement difference between students taught by expert teachers and students taught by out-of-field teachers. </p>
<p>However, socioeconomic status has a large impact on student achievement, and TIMSS also shows more disadvantaged students are being taught by non-expert teachers.So, there may be a cumulative effect — with both teacher expertise and disadvantage playing a role in results.</p>
<h2>Students with expert maths teachers score higher</h2>
<p>TIMSS summarises achievement on the test on a scale with a mean of 500 and standard deviation of 100. In TIMSS 2019, Australian students achieved an overall average of 516 points in maths. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-lifts-to-be-among-top-ten-countries-in-maths-and-science-150275">Australia lifts to be among top ten countries in maths and science</a>
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<p>Students with expert teachers in maths, with specialist teacher training, scored significantly higher in maths in the TIMSS test than any other group. </p>
<p>Those taught by teachers with strong subject matter knowledge and pedagogical training in subjects other than maths scored next highest. </p>
<p>They all performed at a higher level than students taught by teachers with neither the subject-matter knowledge nor the pedagogical knowledge in maths. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Chart showing percentages of students and their average maths score corresponding to type of major of their teacher" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402024/original/file-20210520-13-29wjao.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Percentages of Australian students (Year 8) by the type of major of mathematics teachers and corresponding average mathematics scores.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://research.acer.edu.au/timss_2019/4/">Data: ACER</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>–</p>
<p>It’s important to note, however, the scores of students in this point-of-time assessment are not the simple result of the one teacher surveyed for TIMSS. They are a cumulative result of eight years of schooling. </p>
<p>One of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/educational-disadvantage-is-a-huge-problem-in-australia-we-cant-just-carry-on-the-same-74530">largest effects on student achievement</a> is socioeconomic advantage and disadvantage.</p>
<h2>Disadvantaged students bearing the brunt</h2>
<p>Overall, 46% of year 8 students were taught maths by teachers with a major in both maths and maths education, while 23% were taught by out-of-field teachers. </p>
<p>However, while there is a general shortage of qualified maths teachers, it affects some students more than others. </p>
<p>Principals of the schools selected for TIMSS also reported on the socioeconomic composition of their schools. They were asked to indicate the percentages of students who came from economically affluent homes and from economically disadvantaged homes. </p>
<p>These responses were used to create three categories of school socioeconomic composition: more affluent, more disadvantaged and neither. </p>
<p>The TIMSS data show disadvantaged students are bearing the brunt of maths teacher shortages.</p>
<p>In more affluent schools, out-of-field teachers taught just 16% of students. More qualified maths teachers taught 54% of these students. </p>
<p>In contrast, in more disadvantaged schools, out-of-field teachers taught 28% of students. More qualified maths teachers taught just 31% of students.</p>
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<img alt="Chart showing percentages of maths teachers by type of major in affluent and disadvantaged schools" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402029/original/file-20210520-19-1jaw42v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://research.acer.edu.au/timss_2019/4/">Data: ACER</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>The average maths score for more affluent schools was 558 points, compared to 474 points for more disadvantaged schools. </p>
<p>A proportion of the achievement gap between students taught by out-of-field teachers and those taught by more qualified maths teachers must therefore be related to disadvantage. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-schools-are-becoming-more-segregated-this-threatens-student-outcomes-155455">Australian schools are becoming more segregated. This threatens student outcomes</a>
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<p>Many students in the disadvantaged secondary schools also would have attended disadvantaged primary schools, so may have had many years of more poorly resourced teaching.</p>
<h2>Out-of-field teachers in Australia</h2>
<p>According to the <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/%7E/media/Estimates/Live/eet_ctte/estimates/sup_1213/answers/EW0743_13_Attachment_A.ashx">National School Improvement Tool</a> (among many other documents on effective teachers and schools), highly effective schools have “teachers … [who] are experts in the fields in which they teach, [and] have high levels of confidence in teaching in those fields”. </p>
<p>Yet <a href="https://amsi.org.au/media/AMSI-Occasional-Paper-Out-of-Field-Maths-Teaching.pdf">analysis</a> from the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI) has warned that 76% of students will be taught by an out-of-field maths teacher at least once, and 35% of students twice, in the first four years of high school. Worryingly, 8% will be taught by out-of-field teachers for all four years.</p>
<p>Many out-of-field teachers have been teaching in that subject area for several years. <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/policyinsights/6/">Analysis</a> of the 2013 Staff in Australia’s Schools survey showed out-of-field maths teachers had been teaching the subject to years 7-10 for an average total of 7.4 years. </p>
<p>While TIMSS data on years of teaching were not specific to maths teaching, it did show out-of-field teachers tended to have fewer years of teaching overall under their belt. Out-of-field teachers had 10.9 years on average compared to 16.3 years for the most qualified maths teachers.</p>
<h2>How can we support out-of-field teachers?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://amsi.org.au/media/AMSI-Occasional-Paper-Out-of-Field-Maths-Teaching.pdf">AMSI analysis</a> suggests Australia will not be able to train enough new maths teachers in the short to medium term. So we need other alternatives. </p>
<p>One of these is to support out-of-field teachers by providing targeted forms of professional development. To do this requires an understanding of where weaknesses lie. </p>
<p>Some teachers might have the maths skills required but not enough understanding of maths teaching methods and practices. Other teachers might have the pedagogical background but weaker maths skills. Each group requires different professional development opportunities. </p>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fixing-the-shortage-of-specialist-science-and-maths-teachers-will-be-hard-not-impossible-99651">Fixing the shortage of specialist science and maths teachers will be hard, not impossible</a>
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<p>The TIMSS data show three-quarters of Australia’s out-of-field teachers reported needing professional development in maths content, compared to around half of the more qualified teachers. </p>
<p>And around 70% of all teachers said they need professional development in maths pedagogy and instruction, as well as assessment. </p>
<p>Initiatives like the federal government’s <a href="https://ministers.dese.gov.au/tehan/strengthening-maths-teaching-australian-schools">$9.5 million investment</a> in high-quality mathematics and numeracy professional learning and resources is an important step in supporting out-of-field and in-field maths teachers alike to improve mathematics education, but it must be targeted.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161100/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sue Thomson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Students with expert maths teachers scored significantly higher on an international maths test than any other group. But a student’s level of advantage also affects assessment scores.Sue Thomson, Deputy CEO (Research), Australian Council for Educational ResearchLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1298162020-06-25T16:08:16Z2020-06-25T16:08:16ZMaths teachers in South Africa: case study shows what’s missing<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309937/original/file-20200114-151862-e2xfe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A vicious cycle: the academic gaps in schools start at the teacher training institutions. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>South African students are bad at maths compared to other countries. This is clear from results of South African learners in the <a href="https://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss-landing.html">International Mathematics and Science Study</a>. The <a href="http://www.timss-sa.org.za/download/TIMSS-2015-Grade-9-National-Report.pdf">results</a> show that South Africa’s performance is far from competitive in relation to other countries. </p>
<p>To try and understand the reasons for this poor performance, I did a <a href="https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/ajer/article/view/67915">qualitative case study</a> focusing on a year-long post graduate course taken by aspiring teachers. I focused particularly on a Post Graduate Certificate in Education with a maths focus offered by one of the country’s university of technologies. </p>
<p>I looked at three key themes – the curriculum and its delivery, partnerships during delivery and policy influencing delivery. My research findings show that the success of the Post Graduate Certificate in Education in preparing maths teachers is not without concern and its delivery, in the case study context, needs rethinking.</p>
<p>My findings underscore earlier <a href="https://www.section27.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Spaull-2013-CDE-report-South-Africas-Education-Crisis.pdf">research</a> that has suggested that a shortage of competent and confident qualified mathematics teachers is a key contributing factor to the low maths performance of South African school children.</p>
<h2>Constraints</h2>
<p>The one-year Post Graduate Certificate in Education offered at South African universities is a key qualification for aspiring teachers. This is taken after completing a diploma or degree in other fields such as engineering, business and hospitality. It offers an opportunity to university graduates to become a professionally qualified teacher in one-year instead of pursuing a career in industry.</p>
<p>My research highlights the constraints identified by students and lecturers of the post graduate certificate programme, in particular as it relates to the teaching of maths. </p>
<p>The first constraint I identified involved inadequate support structures as well as information, communication and technology infrastructure to meaningfully support the ever-increasing numbers of students taking up the course. The numbers have <a href="https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/ajer/article/view/67915">grown exponentially</a> – from 10 in 1994 to 100 in 2014 and then 207 in 2015. In short, the university has been expected to do more with less. </p>
<p>The second constraint I identified was a potential over reliance on using Bachelors in Education content designed to be delivered over four years. This was evident from the statements from lecturers clarifying how they identify and select content to present during lectures.</p>
<p>This is a constraint as the four year Bachelors in Education content is not always suitable for the Post Graduate Certificate in Education context. This indicates a need to develop context specific content to make the best of the one-year post graduate certificate. </p>
<p>The third constraint was a limited partnership to develop professional learning communities. These should ideally involve lecturers and students, university representatives evaluating students during compulsory classroom teaching periods and the teachers in schools hosting students.</p>
<p>The main reason for this constraint appeared to be that most lecturers were part-time as the course was offered in the afternoon or evening. This meant that lecturers and students had limited time to engage. This affected the outcomes and the quality of the course. </p>
<p>Another outcome from the lack of engagement between the part-time lecturers was that lecturers duplicated content offered in other programme modules. Students and graduates noted this as one of their main concerns. Unnecessary duplication is a major problem because the post graduate certificate programme has a limited time-frame of just one year. </p>
<p>The fourth and final constraint was a lack of oversight over university policy stipulations linked to the delivery and assessment of the post graduate qualification. </p>
<p>For example, university policy <a href="https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/ajer/article/view/67915">stipulates</a> that an assessment plan, programme and calendar must be provided to students. Such a document wasn’t provided to students as noted during interviews. Policy also stipulates that students must re-do practical teaching if they miss more than five days during the study period. One student noted that he was absent for a whole week during this period and no one noticed. He was awarded a pass for practical teaching.</p>
<p>My research found that lecturers didn’t follow all the university’s policies. This suggested that they weren’t being monitored by the relevant authorities. This lack of oversight by the university is clearly a major problem. </p>
<h2>Next steps</h2>
<p>I conclude from my findings that, to become confident and competent maths teachers, graduates who have passed the Post Graduate Certificate in Education need further development and support. If this isn’t provided, South Africa is unlikely to see an improvement in the performance of its school children.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129816/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacques Verster is affiliated with the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa in the capacity as a Parliamentray Official</span></em></p>A shortage of competent and qualified maths teachers is a key contributing factor to the low maths performance of South African school children.Jacques Verster, CPUT Doctorate graduate, Cape Peninsula University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/996512018-07-10T23:32:46Z2018-07-10T23:32:46ZFixing the shortage of specialist science and maths teachers will be hard, not impossible<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/227023/original/file-20180710-70054-ia0wb1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">About 40% of Australian physics teachers will retire in the next 10 years.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo by jeshoots.com/Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Across Australia, we are facing a massive shortage of specialist mathematics and science teachers, particularly in physics and chemistry. With imminent retirements and poor retention rates, this problem will only get worse. It has already reached crisis point in some areas. </p>
<p>This week, during his opening address at the <a href="http://asta.edu.au/">Australia Science Teachers’ Association</a> <a href="https://asta.eventsair.com/QuickEventWebsitePortal/conasta-67/event-home-page">annual conference</a>, Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham announced the federal government plans to ensure every high school has access to specialist science and maths teachers. This was also announced just prior on Channel 9’s Today Show. </p>
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<p>While this is a noble sentiment, it’s old news. I <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzSjNleUmFAaMV9zVGg2ZFBoZjQ/view?usp=sharing">presented on this very topic</a> at the same conference in 2015. Since then, the issue has become worse. Fixing it will be difficult: where will we find these subject experts in the first place?</p>
<h2>Disturbing trends</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.acer.org/">Australian Council for Educational Research</a> has long highlighted the supply and demand issues for science and maths teachers in Australia. About 40% of physics teachers <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1001&context=policyinsights">will retire in the next 10 years</a> but only 10% of all trainee science teachers <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1027&context=tll_misc">are specialising in physics</a>. </p>
<p>At least 20% of maths and physics teachers are teaching out-of-field. This is often in years 7 and 8, where developing student interest is so crucial. It’s also creeping into senior years where expertise is critical. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/too-many-teachers-teaching-outside-their-area-of-expertise-39688">Too many teachers teaching outside their area of expertise</a>
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<p>With a growing population, and so a growing need for more teachers, these increasing problems will accelerate further. </p>
<h2>Impact on students</h2>
<p>The increasing lack of specialist science and maths teachers is having a profoundly negative impact on students. Australia had a significant decline in <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/ozpisa/22/">scientific literacy performance</a> between 2006 and 2015. </p>
<p>The percentage of year 12 students choosing physics <a href="http://eprints.qut.edu.au/73153/1/Continuing_decline_of_science_proof.pdf">declined</a> from 21% in 1992 to 14% in 2012. </p>
<p>From 1999 to 2013, students choosing only the most basic level of mathematics <a href="http://amsi.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/discipline-profile-2015.pdf">rose</a> from 37% to 52%. </p>
<p>By 2014, 21.4% of female year 12 students <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-it-matters-that-student-participation-in-maths-and-science-is-declining-47559">studied no maths at all</a>. </p>
<h2>Increasing inequity</h2>
<p>These trends are Australia-wide, but impact some areas and sectors <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-physics-syllabus-raises-the-bar-but-how-will-schools-clear-it-73370">in particular</a>. Regional and remote schools are hardest hit. These schools often fail to attract any applications for science and maths positions. </p>
<p>Having reached the tipping point, simple supply-and-demand economics has kicked in. Larger independent schools are relatively OK, as they can offer higher salaries, even subsidised rent. </p>
<p>Selective schools recruit successfully as they offer persistent intellectual rigour, with an emphasis on science and maths. Schools in beachside and lifestyle suburbs, such as Mount Eliza in Victoria, similarly fare far better with attracting staff. </p>
<p>That leaves the majority of non-selective government and non-selective Catholic schools plus smaller independent schools fighting over an ever-shrinking pool of specialist teachers.</p>
<h2>The elephant in the staffroom</h2>
<p>Schools aren’t taking this lying down. State departments of education are <a href="https://www.teach.nsw.edu.au/enhanceyourcareer/science-and-mathematics-scholarships/faqs2">overtly offering scholarships</a>. More covertly, some schools offer higher pay. </p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-will-need-more-than-scholarships-to-make-teaching-science-an-attractive-career-59510">Labor will need more than scholarships to make teaching science an attractive career</a>
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<p>Other incentives used erratically within some schools include greater access to professional development, fewer duties, paid study leave and promotion. But increased responsibilities tend to remove specialists from the classroom. </p>
<p>Rather than sometimes secretive local deals, we need to accept something has to change to attract and retain specialist teachers. Current efforts are not enough. </p>
<h2>So what else can be done?</h2>
<p>The education establishment needs to consider a broad range of possible solutions to provide all students with access to specialist teachers. Since STEM specialists <a href="http://www.utas.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/368546/lifting_our_stem_skills_13.pdf">are very employable</a>, then, yes, higher pay and financial incentives should seriously be considered to aid recruitment and retention. </p>
<p>For example, the UK government <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/maths-and-science-must-be-the-top-priority-in-our-schools-says-prime-minister">pledged a scheme</a> costing A$119 million to offer school leavers a bursary to help pay for university. In return they must commit to become a teacher when they graduate with a maths or physics degree. </p>
<p>But we must attract <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-09/every-high-school-to-get-specialist-maths-science-teachers/9956880">the right type of person</a> – specialists patient enough to work with kids. </p>
<p>There are also other complementary strategies to consider. First, the typical model of one subject specialist (such as physics) per school is highly inefficient since only 40% of their teaching load is within their specialism (one year 11 and one year 12 class). </p>
<p>Such experts could be coordinated to work across multiple schools. Technologies such as video conferencing and collaborative online spaces should be better leveraged to increase the reach of experts to students, be they geographically remote or simply lacking specialist teachers. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/want-to-solve-our-stem-skills-problem-bring-in-the-professionals-87513">Want to solve our STEM skills problem? Bring in the professionals</a>
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<p>Secondly, the sheer volume of retirements must be stemmed. Mechanisms need to be created to encourage gentler retirements, allowing specialists to maintain senior classes without all the usual <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-research-shows-nsw-teachers-working-long-hours-to-cope-with-administrative-load-99453">hassles, admin and stress</a>. With <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-physics-syllabus-raises-the-bar-but-how-will-schools-clear-it-73370">changes to the science and maths curricula</a>, we can’t afford to lose such expertise all at once. </p>
<h2>What next?</h2>
<p>Now the shortage of specialist science and mathematics teachers has been raised politically (though somewhat belatedly), we need to see a proper plan of action, otherwise they are empty words. But for those brave enough to truly tackle the problem, there are solutions out there.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/99651/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Crook is the Founder of CrookED Science, a STEM education consultancy. He is also a member of the Science Teachers' Association NSW and has taught physics in high schools since 1994 in the UK and Australia.</span></em></p>Many students in Australia don’t have access to specialist teachers in science and maths, and the problem is only getting worse.Simon Crook, Honorary Associate, School of Physics, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/786602017-06-21T10:31:01Z2017-06-21T10:31:01ZChallenging the status quo in mathematics: Teaching for understanding<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174303/original/file-20170618-28772-1vhqkpw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">How can we change math instruction to meet the needs of today's kids?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/97aGY8">World Bank Photo Collection / flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Despite decades of <a href="http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED372969.pdf">reform efforts</a>, mathematics teaching in the U.S. <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/20405948">has changed little</a> in the last century. As a result, it seems, American students have been left behind, now ranking <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2017/2017048.pdf#page=31">40th in the world</a> in math literacy. </p>
<p>Several state and national reform efforts have tried to improve things. The most recent <a href="http://www.corestandards.org/Math/">Common Core standards</a> had a great deal of promise with their focus on how to teach mathematics, but after several years, <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0013189X17711899">changes in teaching practices</a> have been minimal. </p>
<p><iframe id="Grc6N" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Grc6N/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>As an education researcher, I’ve observed teachers trying to implement reforms – often with limited success. They sometimes make changes that are more cosmetic than substantive (e.g., more student discussion and group activity), while failing to get at the heart of the matter: What does it truly mean to teach and learn mathematics?</p>
<h2>Traditional mathematics teaching</h2>
<p>Traditional middle or high school mathematics teaching in the U.S. <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/20405948">typically follows this pattern</a>: The teacher demonstrates a set of procedures that can be used to solve a particular kind of problem. A similar problem is then introduced for the class to solve together. Then, the students get a number of exercises to practice on their own.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=686&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=686&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=686&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=862&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=862&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174300/original/file-20170618-28759-1jyothn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=862&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The basics of math instruction have changed little since George Eaton taught at Phillips Academy (1880-1930).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/jKrzFZ">Phillips Academy Archives and Special Collections / flickr</a></span>
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<p>For example, when students learn about the area of shapes, they’re given a set of formulas. They put numbers into the correct formula and compute a solution. More complex questions might give the students the area and have them work backwards to find a missing dimension. Students will often learn a different set of formulas each day: perhaps squares and rectangles one day, triangles the next. </p>
<p>Students in these kinds of lessons are learning to follow a rote process to arrive at a solution. This kind of instruction is so common that it’s seldom even questioned. After all, within a particular lesson, it makes the math seem easier, and students who are successful at getting the right answers find this kind of teaching to be very satisfying.</p>
<p>But it turns out that teaching mathematics this way can actually <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/3696735">hinder learning</a>. Children can become dependent on <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5951/teacchilmath.21.1.0018">tricks and rules</a> that don’t hold true in all situations, making it harder to adapt their knowledge to new situations.</p>
<p>For example, in traditional teaching, children learn that they should distribute a number by multiplying across parentheses and will practice doing so with numerous examples. When they begin learning how to solve equations, they often have trouble realizing that it’s not always needed. To illustrate, take the equation 3(x + 5) = 30. Children are likely to multiply the 3 across the parentheses to make 3x + 15 = 30. They might just as easily have divided both sides by 3 to make x + 5 = 10, but a child who learned the distribution method might have great difficulty recognizing the alternate method – or even that both procedures are equally correct.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174582/original/file-20170619-22075-1mmjc2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Students who learn by rote drilling often have trouble realizing that there are equally valid alternative methods for solving a problem.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kaitlyn Chantry</span></span>
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<h2>More than a right answer</h2>
<p>A key missing ingredient in these traditional lessons is conceptual understanding. </p>
<p>Concepts are ideas, meaning and relationships. It’s not just about knowing the procedure (like how to compute the area of a triangle) but also the significance behind the procedure (like what area means). How concepts and procedures are related is important as well, such as how the area of a triangle can be considered half the area of a rectangle and how that relationship can be seen in their area formulas. </p>
<p>Teaching for conceptual understanding has <a href="http://math.coe.uga.edu/Olive/EMAT3500f08/instrumental-relational.pdf">several benefits</a>. Less information has to be memorized, and students can translate their knowledge to new situations more easily. For example, understanding what area means and how areas of different shapes are related can help students understand the concept of volume better. And learning the relationship between area and volume can help students understand how to interpret what the volume means once it’s been calculated.</p>
<p>In short, building relationships between <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-015-9302-x">how to solve a problem and why it’s solved that way</a> helps students <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-0663.91.1.175">use what they already know</a> to solve new problems that they face. Students with a truly conceptual understanding can see how methods emerged from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.91.1.175">multiple interconnected ideas</a>; their relationship to the solution goes deeper than rote drilling.</p>
<p>Teaching this way is a critical first step if students are to begin recognizing mathematics as meaningful. Conceptual understanding is a key ingredient to helping people think mathematically and use mathematics outside of a classroom.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/174193/original/file-20170616-537-p8ad2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Procedural learning promotes memorization instead of critical thinking and problem solving.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/math-study-exam-set-book-pencil-250606378">m.jrn/shutterstock.com</a></span>
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</figure>
<h2>The will to change</h2>
<p>Conceptual understanding in mathematics has been recognized as important for <a href="http://www.nctm.org/uploadedFiles/About/President,_Board_and_Committees/Board_Materials/MLarson-SF-NCTM-4-16.pdf">over a century</a> and widely discussed for decades. So why has it not been incorporated into the curriculum, and why does traditional teaching abound? </p>
<p>Learning conceptually can take longer and be more difficult than just presenting formulas. Teaching this way may require additional time commitments both in and outside the classroom. Students may have never been asked to think this way before.</p>
<p>There are systemic obstacles to face as well. A new teacher may face pressure from fellow teachers who teach in traditional ways. The <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/high-stakes-testing-overtesting-in-americas-public-schools-3194591">culture of overtesting</a> in the last two decades means that students face more pressure than ever to get right answers on tests. </p>
<p>The results of these tests are also being <a href="https://tcta.org/node/13251-issues_with_test_based_value_added_models_of_teacher_assessment">tied to teacher evaluation systems</a>. Many teachers feel pressure to teach to the test, drilling students so that they can regurgitate information accurately.</p>
<p>If we really want to improve America’s mathematics education, we need to rethink both our education system and our teaching methods, and perhaps to <a href="http://www.nea.org/home/40991.htm">consider how other countries approach mathematics instruction</a>. Research has provided evidence that teaching conceptually has <a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb04/vol61/num05/Improving-Mathematics-Teaching.aspx">benefits</a> not offered by traditional teaching. And students who learn conceptually typically do <a href="https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654310374880">as well or better</a> on achievement tests. </p>
<p>Renowned education expert <a href="https://pasisahlberg.com/">Pasi Sahlberg</a> is a former mathematics and physics teacher from Finland, which is renowned for its world-class education. He <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/">sums it up</a> well:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We prepare children to learn how to learn, not how to take a test.</p>
</blockquote><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/78660/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Rakes receives funding from the National Science Foundation. </span></em></p>Math instruction is stuck in the last century. How can we change teaching methods to move past rote memorization and help students develop a more meaningful understanding – and be better at math?Christopher Rakes, Assistant Professor of Mathematics Education, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/705962016-12-21T19:52:22Z2016-12-21T19:52:22Z20% maths decree sets a dangerous precedent for schooling in South Africa<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/150744/original/image-20161219-24307-1e5x8xg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Learning the fundamentals of maths can equip children with critical thinking and reasoning skills.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The department of basic education in South Africa has reacted to pupils’ exceedingly low attainment rates in maths education in a controversial fashion. It has issued <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Publications/Circular%20A3%20of%202016.pdf?ver=2016-12-07-154005-723">an urgent circular</a> to its heads of departments, principals, managers, directors and exam and curriculum heads outlining a “special condonation dispensation”. This applies to pupils completing grades 7, 8 and 9 in the 2016 academic year which has just ended.</p>
<p>Pupils who did not meet the 40% criteria in mathematics will now be able to progress to the next grade provided they met all other pass requirements and obtained more than 20% in mathematics. Only those who passed Grade 9 maths with 30% or more will be allowed to continue with the subject.</p>
<p>Those who achieved in the 20% band will have to take mathematical literacy in the last years of their school careers. This is a somewhat different and far less demanding subject.</p>
<p>The move has been widely condemned from most quarters. For instance, the education department in the Western Cape province, <a href="http://www.gov.za/af/node/759324">warned</a> that if no “drastic action” is taken, “we will be sitting in the same position next year”. Indeed. The national department claims that its directive constitutes “<a href="http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/no-such-thing-as-a-20-percent-pass-mark-for-maths-7160039">an interim measure</a>”. But how does it hope to address the crisis in maths education in future years? What can be done to instil pupils with the valuable, relevant skills developed through good maths teaching?</p>
<h2>Building critical thinking skills</h2>
<p>South African pupils’ chronic under-performance in maths is not a one-off event. It has <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2016/11/29/revealed-world-pupil-rankings-science-maths-timss-results/">become entrenched</a>. An earlier <a href="http://www.amesa.org.za/TIMSSR.htm">study shows</a> that pupils’ basic maths abilities – calculating fractions, simple number sense, analysis and probability – have steadily declined. </p>
<p>All of this illustrates the debilitating burden that generations of South African children have had to endure, from the apartheid era until the present day: an education system that has failed them. It has not inducted pupils into the custom of thinking and reasoning on logical, rational and critical terms. Critical thinking is a vital skill. </p>
<p>Research <a href="http://www.doane.edu/facstaff/resources/cetl-home/31812">has shown</a> that a well-cultivated critical thinker raises vital questions and problems, formulating them clearly and precisely. They are able to gather and assess relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively. They can reach well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards.</p>
<p>The relationship between “mathematics education” and “more complex thinking” is typically symbiotic and mutually inclusive. Good, productive mathematics education can positively <a href="http://math-site.athabascau.ca/documents/HistoryMathematicsEducation.pdf">raise pupils’ skills</a> in diagnostic, methodical thinking.</p>
<p>Defective teaching and learning could consign them to a school life steeped in frustration, fear and failure. This is precisely the fate of those <a href="https://theconversation.com/boredom-alienation-and-anxiety-in-the-maths-classroom-heres-why-69570">perpetually struggling</a> in this crucial area of learning.</p>
<p>Primary school pupils’ gross underachievement in maths education suggests they may not have been equipped, at their relevant levels, with the skills needed to <a href="http://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-94-007-4978-8_35#page-1">think and reason</a> effectively and meaningfully. This is why the subject occupies such an eminent place in <a href="https://www.acer.edu.au/timss">global schooling assessment criteria</a> – not only because of its content, but for the skills that are transferred and developed alongside it.</p>
<p>The education department <a href="http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/no-such-thing-as-a-20-percent-pass-mark-for-maths-7160039">argues</a> that some students are more inclined towards the arts while others are better with technical subjects. This is not well founded. David Pearson, a scholar of cognitive psychology, refers in <a href="https://theconversation.com/exploding-the-myth-of-the-scientific-vs-artistic-mind-57843">his writing</a> to the domain of neuroscience which has confirmed that “everyone uses both sides of the brain when performing any task”. Pearson argues that while certain impulses of brain activity have occasionally been associated with creative or cogent thinking,</p>
<blockquote>
<p>…it doesn’t really explain who is good at what – and why. Studies have actually revealed considerable overlap in the cognitive processes supporting both scientific and artistic creativity.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Here’s another, fairly widespread <a href="https://theconversation.com/pressured-south-african-schools-had-no-choice-but-to-relax-maths-pass-mark-70289">fable about maths</a>: “The ability to factorise quadratic functions is not a prerequisite for an educated child”. Such standpoints devalue the subject’s more authentic meaning. Instead it’s important to ponder what happens when an education system continually fails to equip its students with the aptitudes required by so many positions or professions, even if those aptitudes are not explicitly mathematical.</p>
<p>Employers have <a href="https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/what-can-i-do-with-my-degree/mathematics">long recognised</a> that applicants with maths credits are more inclined to succeed at jobs that call for logical reasoning, precise enquiry and careful deduction. Not only this, but a wide and protracted variety of job descriptions and professional occupations – in both the sciences and humanities – <a href="http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0019/001914/191425e.pdf">call</a> for <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/every-pupil-needs-a-good-mathematics-education">maths education</a> to a lesser or greater degree.</p>
<h2>A dangerous precedent</h2>
<p>South Africa’s maths dilemma should not be perceived purely on narrow, technical grounds. The domain of mathematics education must be seen instead in its full complexity and for its potency to endow pupils to meet some of life’s most vital challenges. Children’s dismal failure at maths is a reflection of an education system that has continually quelled their capacities to arrive at sound answers based on accurate reasoning.</p>
<p>Drastically lowering standards – such as “condoning” a 20% mark – sets a dangerous precedent from which the country may not recover for years. The education department’s directive essentially diminishes the great and important role of maths in children’s general educational as well as their broader human development. Such a course, regrettably, will assuredly exacerbate an already dire situation.</p>
<p>Maths education can only really flourish and generate more fruitful outcomes within the context of a well-functioning national education system. It is here, arguably, that the real problem lies. South Africa’s education system is merely a reflection of its broader social system. This is generally characterised by high levels of economic and social inequality, poverty, violence and abuse, and dysfunctionality. </p>
<p>It stands to reason, then, that positive educational change is incumbent upon profound social change. In the absence of social change, however, what is the fate of the overwhelming majority of South Africa’s 12 million and more school-going children today? My own <a href="http://ruralreporters.com/research-schooling-in-rural-south-africa/">field studies</a> show the importance and usefulness of gaining a deeper understanding of how certain poor, isolated schooling communities have endeavoured to overcome the odds. </p>
<p>Such an approach presents a prospective framework – broadly defined – for others to emulate or, at the very least, to contemplate while real social change remains obscure and elusive.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70596/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>In this piece Clive Kronenberg draws on his prior post-doctoral fellowship studies, funded by the Critical Thinking Group attached to CPUT's Faculty of Education. </span></em></p>Maths occupies an eminent place in global schooling assessment criteria not just because of its content, but for the skills that are taught and developed alongside it.Clive Kronenberg, NRF Accredited & Senior Researcher; Lead Coordinator of the South-South Educational Collaboration & Knowlede Interchange Initiative, Cape Peninsula University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/702892016-12-13T09:47:31Z2016-12-13T09:47:31ZPressured South African schools had no choice but to relax maths pass mark<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/149835/original/image-20161213-1615-vu7id5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">By the time pupils who struggle with Maths reach Grade 9, there are huge bottlenecks in the system.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">REUTERS/Ryan Gray</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Starting now, South Africa’s pupils will be able to obtain as <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Publications/Circular%20A3%20of%202016.pdf?ver=2016-12-07-154005-723">little as 20%</a> in mathematics in Grades 7, 8 and 9 and still progress to the next year of learning. This has been touted by many as evidence of an alleged inexorable decline in educational standards.</p>
<p>The country is already known for its <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2016/11/29/revealed-world-pupil-rankings-science-maths-timss-results/">poor performance</a> in international standardised assessments in mathematics. This latest move may be misconstrued as condoning such poor achievement.</p>
<p>But the truth is a little more complex.</p>
<p>For Grades 7 and 8 – when pupils should be between 14 and 15 years of age – this strategy of “pushing through” to avoid repeated student retention is not new. It has been part of standard policy. This means that by the time pupils reach Grade 9, there’s a bottleneck in the system. It was inevitable that this pressure would need to be relieved.</p>
<p>To understand why, one must consider the confluence of a number of factors, including: the over-inflated importance of mathematics; a curriculum packed too full to allow for any slip-ups or slower learning rates, and the country’s struggling maths teachers. <a href="http://mg.co.za/article/2016-12-09-00-home-is-where-the-learning-is">Maths performance correlates directly with poverty factors</a>, meaning these challenges affect more than 75% of South Africa’s schools. </p>
<h2>Inflated value of maths</h2>
<p>In the past 20 years there’s been a major shift internationally towards thinking of education in purely economic terms (as opposed to critical citizenry, creativity or self-actualization). This reduction of education to purely economic ends, coupled with the conflation between mathematical prowess and problem-solving skills for the “knowledge economy”, has resulted in mathematics being isolated as “essential knowledge”. Its proponents insist that maths is required for an education of value.</p>
<p>To fully appreciate this shift in thinking, South Africans need to suspend their collective amnesia: passing mathematics was not a requirement to move into Grade 10 a generation ago. And yet adults from this era are often economically productive, creative and academically accomplished. Many would publicly acknowledge their own struggles with numbers.</p>
<p>The vast majority of jobs of many flavours and incomes do not require the type of maths taught even in Grade 9. This is forgotten when mathematics is positioned as supremely important for the job market, or for students’ personal development.</p>
<h2>Moving targets</h2>
<p>Against the backdrop of this increased emphasis on mathematics, it’s useful to consider key features of the <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Policies/PolicyProgPromReqNCS.pdf?ver=2015-02-03-154857-397">National Policy Pertaining to the Promotion Requirements of the National Curriculum Statement</a>.</p>
<p>An excessive emphasis on mathematics permeates this policy. Passing mathematics with “moderate” performance (that is, 40% or more) is now a criterion for passing in every grade. It’s a criterion many students <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Reports/REPORT%20ON%20THE%20ANA%20OF%202014.pdf?ver=2014-12-04-104938-000">do not meet</a>.</p>
<p>The second issue is the “maximum four years in phase” policy. According to this, a pupil may not repeat more than one year in each three year phase of compulsory schooling. If a pupil has already repeated a year in a phase, they are “progressed” through into the next grade – whether they meet the promotion/pass criteria or not.</p>
<p>This “maximum four years in phase” policy bites at the end of Grade 9. Pushing pupils through without passing maths was a viable option in lower grades, as there was a “next grade” to progress to. But leaving Grade 9 without passing means leaving school without the <a href="http://www.saqa.org.za/docs/pol/2003/getc.pdf">General Education and Training</a> certificate required for admission to a technical college.</p>
<p>In the past, officials and schools have often suspended the “max four years” criterion to give pupils another opportunity to try and attain a recognisable school leaving qualification, requiring a maths score of higher than 40%. For pupils who have been failing maths for years, this is almost <a href="http://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/news/dismal-10-average-for-grade-9-maths-1791182">impossible</a>.</p>
<p>The pressure to move learners through the system is immense. Each year, principals and senior teachers suffer validation meetings, an event where schools justify their decisions to the provincial education department about whether students who failed should repeat or progress.</p>
<p>As a former mathematics Head of Department who has attended such meetings, I came to appreciate the lottery involved about who was “progressed” and who was not, as officials clandestinely tweak results until the number of students moved through was politically acceptable. Often those with 20% or more would have their marks “adjusted” to 30% for what is referred to as a “condoned pass”. As teachers, we are told to “find marks” in assessments to justify passing or condoning borderline students.</p>
<p>But sometimes there are just not enough marks to find.</p>
<h2>Huge learning backlogs</h2>
<p>The second policy that adds to the conundrum is the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). This demands strict adherence to pacing and content. Mathematics in CAPS moves at breakneck speed: ten jam-packed weeks of content per term, even though there are often only eight weeks of actual lessons.</p>
<p>Curriculum advisers regularly correct teachers who deviate from the stated content and pacing of curriculum documents. That means a teacher who has the confidence and ability to address learning backlogs by professionally interpreting the curriculum to meet a pupil’s needs is often criticised for doing so. Teachers without this confidence or skill will not even attempt the task.</p>
<p>Such rigidity is in stark contradiction to the National Policy Pertaining to the Promotion Requirements, which is peppered with phrases regarding tailoring learning to address backlogs and learning barriers.</p>
<p>Primary schools pragmatically push over-age (16 years old) Grade 7 pupils through to Grade 8 in senior schools. Senior schools then receive under-prepared pupils who are too old to refer to schools of skills or special needs schools – the maximum referral age is 14. There is nothing to be done but to try and teach struggling learners, knowing they will be pushed up into Grade 9 where they will get stuck or <a href="https://africacheck.org/spot_check/south-africas-matric-pass-rate-obscures-dropout-rate/">drop out</a>. After Grade 9, the pupil enrolment dwindles rapidly as students lose the protection of being pushed through by the conveyor belt.</p>
<p>Together, these policies effectively put pupils on a one way track into Grade 9 irrespective of their performance in mathematics at lower grades. Then it has kept them in Grade 9 by insisting they meet the pass criteria… until now.</p>
<h2>Struggling mathematics teachers</h2>
<p>Two urgent issues, most concentrated in schools that serve the country’s poorest learners, further exacerbate what is already an obviously disastrous situation.</p>
<p>Firstly, the mathematics abilities of primary school teachers is a problem experienced in many countries, including the <a href="http://washingtonmonthly.com/2016/06/15/elementary-school-teachers-struggle-with-common-core-math-standards/">US</a> and the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2010/feb/14/primary-teachers-fail-maths-tests">UK</a>, but particularly in <a href="http://www.cde.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/MATHEMATICS%20OUTCOMES%20IN%20SOUTH%20AFRICAN%20SCHOOLS.pdf">South Africa</a>. Mathematics specialists are appointed in high schools. Primary school teachers are trained as generalists. Yet it is in primary school where the learning backlog begins.</p>
<p>Secondly, teachers’ working conditions in poorer schools are abysmal. Those teachers who can leave often do, and mathematics teachers in particular often possess transferable skills. They <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Reports/Teachers%20for%20the%20future%2016%20NOV%202005.pdf?ver=2008-03-05-111025-000">relocate</a> to other schools or other industries for better working conditions.</p>
<p>Primary schools thus struggle to provide the crucial foundations for maths, and secondary schools struggle to retain the specialists who might be able to address the problem later.</p>
<h2>Relieving the self-applied pressure</h2>
<p>It’s no wonder then that <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/Portals/0/Documents/Publications/Education%20Statistic%202013.pdf?ver=2015-03-30-144732-767">Grade 9 is the largest cohort in South Africa’s senior schools</a>. Nor should it come as a surprise that large percentages of these classes are extremely weak at mathematics. Many pupils have barriers to learning that have been unaddressed for so long that there is little to be done at this late stage.</p>
<p>The Department of Basic Education has snookered itself by applying tight Grade 9 promotion criteria based on mathematics, without providing the means to meet them. This latest move is simply a welcome, realistic – and long overdue – acknowledgement that the ability to factorise quadratic functions is not a prerequisite for an educated child.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70289/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sara Muller works at the University of Cape Town as a researcher and PhD candidate.
She receives funding from the Canon Collins Educational and Legal Assistance Trust in support of her PhD research, and is an active member of the Education Fishtank group, an open forum for engaging in education discussions in Cape Town.
All opinions expressed in her articles are her own.</span></em></p>The truth behind South Africa’s decision to allow 20% as a maths pass mark in some grades is a little more complex than many have suggested.Sara Black, Researcher: Teacher Development and Sociology of Education, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/556972016-03-07T18:55:12Z2016-03-07T18:55:12ZWhy is it so hard to recruit good maths and science teachers?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113820/original/image-20160304-9503-1hszfg3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Some students will not encounter a trained maths or science teacher until the latter years of secondary school.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are well-recognised problems with student participation and achievement in maths and science. Widespread shortages of suitable secondary maths and science teachers and low levels of students studying these subjects at secondary and tertiary levels are not just problems faced by Australia, but have become international issues. </p>
<p>A number of <a href="http://remstep.org.au/conference/2015-archive.html">interrelated factors</a> that form a self-perpetuating cycle contribute to this situation.</p>
<h2>Lack of confidence</h2>
<p>Many primary teachers report a lack of competence and confidence in teaching maths and science, not having taken the higher levels of these subjects in senior secondary school or in some cases not having studied maths and/or science at senior level.</p>
<h2>Negative mindsets</h2>
<p>Primary students can develop negative attitudes and mindsets about their ability in these subjects. Early experiences of struggle or “failure”, especially in maths, can powerfully predict and constrain future engagement and achievement and act as a barrier to learning. Students can see their ability and indeed their <a href="http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/30739243?selectedversion=NBD20079545">identity as fixed</a>.</p>
<p>Australian primary students perform <a href="http://www.austcolled.com.au/documents/item/80">relatively more poorly</a> than their secondary counterparts on international measures of achievement in maths and science, with a general pattern of decline.</p>
<h2>Lack of trained maths and science teachers</h2>
<p>Approximately one-third of Australian year nine students are <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/education-workforce-schools/report">being taught</a> maths and one-quarter are being taught science by an out-of-field teacher.</p>
<p>This situation is worse in government schools, low socio-economic status (SES) schools and regional and remote schools. </p>
<p>Some schools tick all these boxes. Some students will not encounter a trained maths or science teacher until the latter years of secondary schooling, if at all. This situation has been with us for some time and is, frankly, a national disgrace.</p>
<p>Participation in the higher levels of maths and science at senior secondary level <a href="http://www.aare.edu.au/publications-database.php/5336/Year-12-students'-and-higher-mathematics:-Emerging-issues">is declining</a>. Participation in undergraduate maths and science courses is also declining; some departments of maths are shrinking or closing.</p>
<p>There are shortages of initial teacher education secondary candidates in maths and science (especially physics and chemistry). Some initial teacher education (ITE) primary candidates will struggle with maths and science because of background, mindsets and attitudes towards these subjects.</p>
<h2>What are the typical responses?</h2>
<p>When faced with the above situations, the usual responses include providing ITE and practising teachers with more content knowledge and pedagogical strategies, along with producing units of work and resources for teachers. </p>
<p>Often these resources and strategies emphasise “hands on” approaches to both maths and science in the hope that these will lead to greater engagement on the part of students and greater effectiveness for teachers.</p>
<p>Such “teacher-proof” resources can be counterproductive, however, if teachers lack confidence in their capacity to use these “black boxes”. </p>
<p>Another approach is to provide scholarships to attract additional science and maths teachers. </p>
<p>Higher pay for such teachers has also been suggested, but is usually resisted in the public sector.</p>
<p>None of these measures gets to the heart of the matter.</p>
<h2>What do we need to change?</h2>
<p>Additional training and resources can be useful treatments of the symptoms, but we need to address the underlying causes of the situation. </p>
<p>It is imperative that action is taken in primary schooling to influence the mindsets and thinking of both students and teachers. </p>
<p>Both need to engage with “real world” maths and science, in the sense that mathematicians and scientists are engaged with solving contemporary problems. </p>
<p>The thinking behind such problem solving needs to be made visible. In this respect, practice, identity and attitudes are more important than content. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113821/original/image-20160304-9496-hy00ba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Trainee teachers need to overcome their doubts and fears about their capabilities in maths.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This requires ITE candidates to experience maths and science through exposure to scientists and scientific thinking. The aim is to overcome their doubts and fears about their personal capabilities and their capacity to teach in these areas; they need to be motivated to want to engage and learn, rather then merely teach what they find difficult.</p>
<p>To do this education academics and ITE candidates need to engage with science and maths faculties and with research centres. And these faculties need to engage in a variety of outreach activities such as “scientists in schools”. </p>
<p>Maths and science needs to be seen as contemporary and alive and not something archived in a text or on the web where we already know the answers.</p>
<p>We need to expose undergraduate maths and science students to the possibilities of teaching as a rewarding career. Given the above, there is also a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265619917_Specialist_primary_teachers_Experts_in_the_field">compelling argument</a> for some primary teachers with suitable background and training to act as specialist maths and science teachers in schools.</p>
<p>Primary students in particular need to experience success in understanding and doing maths and science and to see that their efforts can lead to improvement, if they are to have any chance of enjoying and succeeding in maths and science in the secondary years and beyond.</p>
<p>These changes and approaches are integral to the ReMSTEP (Reconceptualising Maths and Science Teacher Education Programs through collaborative partnerships between scientists and educators) project being undertaken at Melbourne, Monash, Deakin and La Trobe universities. This is part of a national project termed <a href="http://remstep.org.au/">Enhancing the Training of Pre-service Maths and Science Teachers</a>.</p>
<p>Changing the thinking of primary and secondary teachers and students about maths and science lies at the heart of what these programs are attempting to achieve through exploring multiple models for engaging ITE candidates in a variety of learning and professional practices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55697/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephen Dinham receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Office of Learning for Teaching. </span></em></p>Lack of confidence, negative attitudes and low student participation rates are just a few of the challenges maths and science teachers face.Stephen Dinham, Professor and Associate Dean Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.