By Bridie Smith
Australian students’ maths abilities have been compromised over decades as a result of “faddish, unproven” teaching methods that have failed to deliver results, a national study has found.
The report by the Grattan Institute reveals that one-third of Australian students lack proficiency in maths, with those struggling coming from disadvantaged backgrounds and well-off families.
Teacher Lidia Cummins with students at Bentleigh West Primary, where maths is taught in an explicit, systematic way. The school’s NAPLAN results are among the best in the state.Credit: Wayne Taylor
Compounding matters, the report released on Sunday also found one in four teachers lacked confidence teaching grade 5 and 6 maths, while many teachers expressed concern about their colleagues’ abilities.
“Maths in primary schools is just languishing,” said Grattan Institute education program director and report lead author Dr Jordana Hunter.
“We need to stop accepting maths mediocrity. We need to set higher standards and go after them.”
The Maths Guarantee report surveyed 1745 teachers, with one in five saying they worried about teaching maths, while 94 per cent of school leaders said at least some teachers at their school would be hesitant to teach grade 5 or 6 maths.
A 2023 global maths test found just 13 per cent of Australian grade 4 students excelled in maths, compared to 22 per cent in England and 49 per cent in Singapore.
“We should be doing at least as well as England,” Hunter said. “We don’t stand for [being beaten by England] in cricket, and we shouldn’t stand for it in mathematics.”
Hunter said because maths was sequential, gaps acquired in primary school were compounded over a student’s school life.
She said primary schools were the best place to begin turning things around, with schools such as Bentleigh West Primary School already working with a winning formula.
The school in Melbourne’s south-east was one of two Victorian schools examined in the report. It has some of the strongest NAPLAN results in the state, teacher confidence is high, and students learn a year ahead of their level. The school’s maths extension program is also run by a grade 2 teacher.
But success took time. Principal Sarah Asome said the school adopted an explicit, systematic teaching approach in 2014. Before this, there was resistance to maths, and it was often the first subject dropped from the timetable to accommodate activities such as swimming.
She said once the school adopted explicit teaching, prioritised maths and ensured teachers had professional development opportunities, teacher confidence soared, as did student performance.
Grade 1 teacher Lidia Cummins said the school’s explicit teaching method instilled confidence in teachers and students.
“Because we have such a sequential way of teaching maths, you have the confidence to know that it’s not a fluke if a student doesn’t know something, because you know they have had a lot of exposure to concepts and a lot of repetition,” Cummins said.
Staff meet weekly to review the content and assess whether students were retrieving concepts taught in class, a routine allowing for close monitoring and, if needed, intervention.
At high-achieving Ballarat Clarendon College, primary students have been taught by specialist maths teachers for a decade. Teachers use explicit teaching and lesson plans that have been honed over several years.
Head of prep to grade 5 maths, Chris Calleja, said teachers were comfortable to move around and teach different year levels.
“We should be doing at least as well as England.”
Lead author Dr Jordana Hunter
“It helps their professional learning, and they’re also able to see the sequence of the curriculum,” he said.
Student results are discussed at weekly staff meetings, allowing for effective catch-up support.
“We don’t buy into [the thinking] that struggling kids need a different formula than the kids who are more capable. I would say the secret to our success is consistency.”
For Australian schools to emulate such success stories, the Grattan report recommends a 10-year strategy to lift teacher confidence and student performance.
Principal Jen Bourke with students at Ballarat Clarendon College, which recorded impressive results in last year’s NAPLAN tests. Credit: Tara Moore
Governments and schools, it says, should commit to achieving a 90 per cent proficiency in numeracy, as measured by NAPLAN.
To get there, primary maths “master teacher” roles and maths hubs should be created so that the best primary schools could work with those that need help.
Hunter said the cost of the reforms would equate to $67 per primary student per year over a decade.
Victoria has undertaken to lift the proportion of students performing at “strong” and “exceeding” levels in literacy and numeracy by 10 per cent by 2030, as part of a $2.5 billion school funding deal signed with the federal government in January.
Last year, the state’s NAPLAN results showed that 55 per cent of Victorian grade 3 students were performing at “strong” levels in numeracy and 12.5 per cent at “exceeding” levels.
Grade 5 students performed better, with 56.8 per cent performing at “strong” levels and 14.3 per cent at “exceeding” levels.
However, almost a third of grade 3 students and just over a quarter of grade 5 students were categorised as “needing additional support” or “developing” in numeracy.
A state government spokesperson said the agreement with the federal government would ensure every school would receive the funding needed to help students thrive.
The spokesperson said Victoria’s NAPLAN results were among the best in the nation at all year levels, adding that the government was “working with all schools to implement best practice teaching methods.”
Opposition education spokeswoman Jess Wilson said the report showed evidence-based solutions helped students achieve their best.
“It’s clear Victoria needs a new approach to learning to ensure every child has access to the world-class education they deserve,” she said.
Federal education minister Jason Clare said the funding deal, which includes early years numeracy checks, would put schools “on a path to full and fair funding”.
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