How we are helping improve maths education for all

‘One of the impediments to successful democracy in our age is the complexity of the modern world, which makes it difficult for ordinary men and women to form an intelligent opinion on political questions, or even to decide whose expert judgement deserves the most respect. The cure for this trouble is to improve education.’

Bertrand Russell was talking about education across the curriculum. What he said is as true now as it was in 1932, but I believe that mathematical and data education are becoming increasingly important. Mathematical modelling, data science and AI are driving the ‘fourth industrial revolution’, and climate change threatens our future.

MEI has a vital role to play in helping young people and adults access the mathematical and data education they need to support their own success and the success of the country, as the world changes. We do this through our leadership roles in the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM), the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme (AMSP), and our independent maths education development work.

In England, there is some good news in maths education:

• Young people are scoring better than ever in international maths performance tests: TIMSS 2023, PISA 2022
• Record numbers of students are choosing to study maths at Level 3 (A level Mathematics, A level Further Mathematics and Core Maths)
• Politicians across the political spectrum recognise the importance of maths education – successive governments have funded the NCETM continuously since 2006, the AMSP and its predecessor programmes since 2005, and the Maths Hubs Programme since 2014.

However, there are also several serious challenges, and MEI’s work will aim to help address these:

Attitudes to maths education

Some young people cannot yet appreciate the value of the maths they learn at school, considering that school maths is just ‘something you have to learn for exams’.

I wrote about attitudes to maths last year, during my time as president of the Mathematical Association, and interviewed David Thomas, Chief Executive of Axiom Maths, about it.

MEI’s work helps to improve young people’s perception of maths. We put emphasis on teaching maths in a way that fosters a deep and connected understanding, so that students can appreciate its beauty and utility. This maths ‘teaching for mastery’ pedagogy underpins the NCETM/Maths Hubs and AMSP work.

Maths teacher shortage

The shortage of secondary and post-16 maths teachers is a key limiting factor in improving maths teaching and increasing participation in maths education post-16.

MEI has explored the issue through a discussion paper on the recruitment, development and retention of maths teachers, and hosting a seminar involving experts from schools, colleges, academia and government. I made the maths teacher shortage the focus of one of my reports as Mathematical Association President.

Feedback from teachers who engage in professional development through the NCETM/Maths Hubs and AMSP suggests that our work supports practising maths teachers to stay in the profession. By fostering excellent maths teaching, I hope our work is also helping to inspire more young people to want to become maths teachers.

Socio-economic disadvantage

Disturbing evidence from the Maths Excellence Pathways report showed that, for students who excelled in their KS2 Maths SATS, fewer than 50% of students on Free School Meals went on to achieve grades 7-9 in GCSE Maths, compared with almost 70% of other students. Furthermore, regardless of their socio-economic background, students who do achieve grades 7-9 in GCSE Maths are equally likely to go on to study A level Maths, so finding a way to improve the GCSE Maths grades of students from disadvantaged backgrounds could have a major positive impact on their educational outcomes at age 18 and beyond. Having A level Maths is associated with higher pay, so this could also improve social mobility. Through our ‘Maths Progression Programme’ work in Birmingham, funded by the Maths Excellence Fund, MEI is already seeking ways to address this issue. Over the coming academic year, the AMSP, working in partnership with the NCETM and the Maths Hubs, will be working closely with up to 400 secondary schools to explore ways to address this issue. The Higher Level Maths Achievement Programme will tackle the issue head-on and equip schools and teachers to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds to achieve high GCSE Maths grades and continue to study maths beyond GCSE.

The maths gender gap

Research evidence suggests that there is no innate gender difference in maths ability. However, England has a persistent gender gap in maths achievement, with girls performing less well than boys at both GCSE and A level, and a far greater proportion of boys than girls choosing to study maths at A level. This can restrict girls’ career options and reduce their earning potential.

In 2025/26, the AMSP will be working closely with up to 200 secondary schools to explore ways to address this issue through the Girls’ Progression Programme.

School maths and technology

Graphing technology, spreadsheets and other digital tools can make many aspects of the school maths curriculum easier to understand and learn. They can also transform the teaching of statistics from meaningless number crunching with small data sets to genuine statistical analysis.

Excellent, easy-to-use software tools are available free of charge to support the teaching and learning of maths, yet the use of technology to enhance maths teaching remains low.

MEI leads pioneering work in the use of technological tools and real data sets to enhance maths teaching. We provide free materials and offer expert professional development for teachers of maths at primary, Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4, Functional Skills & GCSE resit, Core Maths, A level Maths and A level Further Maths. Use of technology to enhance understanding of maths is also embedded in MEI’s Integral online learning system. Through a new programme in 2025/26, the AMSP will work with teachers and students in schools across England to develop their understanding of the relationship between maths, data science and AI.

Curriculum and assessment

The government’s Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR), which is due to report this term, is a great opportunity to improve the current maths curriculum and assessment. We have sought to inform the CAR through our response to the CAR consultation, and through NCETM Director’s blog posts focused on primary maths, secondary maths and post-16 FSQ/GCSE resit. Common themes are that the curriculum must help ensure all pupils develop a deep and connected understanding of the essential maths everyone needs for effective citizenship, and assessment must enable pupils to demonstrate the maths they know and can use.

When the CAR reports later this term, we will focus MEI’s work to help ensure the report’s recommendations can be implemented effectively. We will also continue our efforts to ensure that the maths curriculum develops over the longer term, so our young people are equipped for success in a rapidly developing world, as discussed in the Royal Society’s Mathematics Futures Report.

Throughout this academic year, my MEI colleagues and I will share regular blog posts highlighting MEI’s work to address these challenges and help improve maths education for all.