Year 6 student Mike finds maths "an interesting challenge". He likes the feeling of accomplishing tasks and enjoys fractions and division. But maths also lacks the practical element of science he loves, and he struggles with algebra and doing calculations in his head.
He's not getting the attention he needs from classroom teachers, and so he started tutoring "before high school gets hard". He's not alone in seeking extra help amid a collapse in mathematical literacy across the state.
Year 6 student Mike wants to make sure he doesn't fall behind in maths in high school, as state-wide performance results decline.Credit: James Brickwood
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results released on Tuesday show just over half (52 per cent) of NSW students can demonstrate "more than elementary skills" in maths.
For the first time since the PISA assessment began, Australia has fallen into line with the OECD average. Sixteen countries that previously performed worse than Australia have either out-performed it or are now on par.
A significant gender gap in maths performance in favour of male students has returned, despite closing in 2015, and even the highest performing students have recorded "worrying levels of decline", the report said.
The mathematics crisis facing Australia and NSW has been charted by NAPLAN numeracy tests that indicate students are flat-lining at best. Higher order maths skills are slumping but there is no clear scapegoat; experts point to factors ranging from teacher confidence to workforce planning.
Schools program manager of the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute, Janine Sprakel, said the PISA results reflect an ageing maths teacher workforce, fewer students taking calculus-based courses in years 11 and 12, and "out of field" maths teaching.
The institute this year found about three quarters of year 7 to 10 students were taught maths for at least one year by a teacher not trained in the subject. "The [PISA] data is consistent with Australia’s urgent need to address this [to be] economically and socially competitive on the world stage," Ms Sprakel said.
"The factors at play are complex with no single cause or culprit."
'Really low' entry requirements
Rachel Wilson, a senior lecturer in educational assessment at Sydney University, said she was concerned about "really low" entry requirements for university teaching degrees.
"We simply cannot expect above-average education from schools if we are putting in below average students," she said, noting many students in teaching degrees had low maths competency and studied low-level or no mathematics in senior high school.
Australian Tutoring Association chief executive Mohan Dhall said maths teachers also tended to focus on content rather than student learning.
"The idea is: 'here is the answer and formula', not 'let me help you understand'," he said. "The distressing thing for me in the tutoring space is maths teachers are not able to remediate struggling students. If I were a disengaged student, I would not be learning."
He said this was "not a critique of the maths teachers profession" but one of many factors that explained why standardised test results were falling.
Contrary to Australia, the countries topping the PISA list - China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea - teach maths by direct instruction and have a high take-up of tutoring. In Singapore, the highest performing country where students are about three years ahead of Australia in maths performance, up to 95 per cent of students receive private tuition.
"There’s a different place for teachers in the classroom," Mr Dhall said. "In Australian schools, teachers are having to engage students and bring relevance to their teachings."
While lecturers are doing a "really good job of training new graduates in software and engaging teaching methods", he said there was not yet a sufficient mix in schools of new teachers trained in those methods and more experienced teachers.
The NSW government has attempted to boost maths performance by reinstating the requirement that aspiring teachers achieve at least band four in HSC mathematics to work at a state primary school, and making maths compulsory for year 11 and 12 students.