Schools Minister: rote learning vital to boost maths skills Nick Gibb, the Schools Minister, said all children should learn times tables by heart to enable them to tackle more complex number problems at a later stage. Picture: ALAMY By Graeme Paton, Education EditorLast Updated: 6:43PM BST 10/07/2012 Children should learn their times tables and long division by rote at primary school to develop a “fluency” in maths, according to the Schools Minister. Repeatedly practicing basic sums at a young age can prepare children to tackle more challenging topics such as algebra at secondary school, it was claimed. Nick Gibb said that learning times tables by heart should become a fundamental part of primary education for all pupils amid claims that a “lack of confidence with numbers” was having a “profound impact” on the economy. The comments come weeks after the Government published plans to overhaul the National Curriculum in England in a bid to promote the core knowledge that children should acquire at each age. A draft maths curriculum suggested that nine-year-old should know all their times tables up to 12×12 and confidently work with numbers up to 10 million by the end of primary school. Currently, children only need to know up to 10×10 and familiarise themselves with numbers below 1,000 by the age of 11. The National Union of Teachers insisted the approach would “stultify the learning process” by failing to give children the freedom to develop at their own pace. But Mr Gibb insisted that learning key pieces of information by heart gave pupils the confidence needed to tackle more complex issues at a later stage. In a speech to the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education in central London, he said: “There are things that do need to be taught by rote, for example multiplication tables. “I believe very strongly – many people in the country believe very strongly – that children should know their multiplication tables by heart by a certain age. We have set out in the curriculum that we think children should know that by the end of Year 4.” Addressing academics and teachers, he quoted a study from Carnegie Mellon University in the United States that found primary school children with a good grasp of long division and fractions were more likely to go on to achieve high scores in algebra in their teens. Raised achievement levels were just as marked for children from poor backgrounds, he said. Mr Gibb compared learning times tables to playing the piano, when children repeatedly practice scales and chords by heart. Speaking afterwards, he said: “The working memory is only so big and there are certain things you need to embed in your mind. “When you play the piano, you have to acquire an automaticity to it and that comes with practice. The same comes with learning to read. All these things come with practice and that’s what multiplication tables are about. “It is about fluency and confidence with numbers.” He added: “It is difficult to do long division if you don’t know your tables. One thing leads to another. Being confident with large numbers and how division is formed helps you later on when you come to more complicated things such as algebra.” Mr Gibb also warned that failure to improve maths skills risked damaging the economy, with children in England less likely to study the subject to a high level than those in most other developed nations. “The lack of confidence with numbers is now having a profound impact on our society and economy,” he said. “In particular, we know many employers are deeply concerned at the poor numeracy amongst many school leavers.”
From http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9390294/Schools-Minister-r…
Read the news report on some of the governments latest proposals to raise literacy standards prior to students starting secondary school. It includes compulsory summer schools!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9390003/Children-to-be-giv…
Read Get into Teaching’s Blogger Nick as he discusses progression within the Teaching profession.
http://getintoteaching.wordpress.com/2012/07/04/nick-progression-opportunities/
Article from the BBC on the impact of technology on learning http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18105992#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
The government is planning to launch free early education for some 2 year olds. Which children will benefit from this is still being debated.
Its a news story you should follow especially if you are looking at key stage 1 or 2 teaching! Find the update from the department of education here: http://www.education.gov.uk/inthenews/inthenews/a00211352/cons40percent
As part of the UCAS launch day tomorrow we have a member of the Education and Teaching Faculty at Chichester University talking about applying for both Primary and Secondary teaching.
You will get your timetable when you register with your tutor at 8.45am tomorrow and if you’re not scheduled for one of his talks, we hope he will also be available in the Atrium on the Chichester University Stand over your lunchtime.
HSFC Careers: Teaching 