Is Learning Maths To The Age Of 18 A Good Idea? Rishi Sunak Seems To Think So...

Rishi Sunak`s resolution to make maths obligatory in England up to the age of 18 has caused many to relive the horrors of their maths lessons growing up.

But is it a bad idea?

It certainly isn`t a new idea, in fact it was suggested by the Lords` select committee on science and technology back in 2012, at which time it was deemed impractical.

I listened to one radio broadcaster bemoaning the impact of making those students (who he referred to as little oiks) continue to take Maths until 18, when they already struggle with the subject. The reality in this case is that around 30% of students fail their Maths GCSE, which is to say that they do not achieve the minimum passing grade of 4. Therefore those students who struggle with Maths are already expected to continue to study the subject until they turn 18, or pass a resit examination.

Around 12% of students take A-Level Maths each year, making it the most popular A-Level currently [Ofqual 2019], which leaves us with around 58% of students who achieved a passing grade at Maths and did not progress to A-Level. These are not weak mathematicians - though granted there will be amongst their number a fair few who are grateful not to have to continue with their Maths course.

Many countries currently offer compulsory Maths courses up to the age of 18, not least of which because if a student stops using a skill between the age of 16 and 18, the chances of having retained competence with that skill, ready for university or work, is fairly unlikely. It is worth mentioning that many A-Level courses require some competence with Maths, so sustaining the use of the Mathematical parts of the brain serves to increase the strength of the synapses which process calculations and problem solve in general. In France it was noted that when Maths was not compulsory, the grades in other subjects fell.

It therefore follows that Maths should be taught to students for as long as they are in education, to maintain and increase competency with logic and arithmetic. But it is perhaps the method and objectives of that education which require more study.

I would propose that there is a suitable curriculum for the remaining 58% of students. For the proportion who are capable of accessing Maths AS Level, but for whom the A2 content would be too challenging, it would make sense for them to undertake a two year course to achieve the AS qualification. The remainder could access what we call `Core Maths` - an applied Mathematics curriculum that looks at real life applications of statistics, probability, percentages, ratio etc. Dependent on the exam board, this either looks at case studies or simply the way that we use Maths in the real world. It actively encourages links with Spreadsheets, such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, and embeds the skills learnt at GCSE rather than repeating or extending these topics.

This could be tailored by schools to suit the needs of their students, indeed it wouldn`t be essential that every student is entered for an exam - the act of study and project work would be enough.

Because these applied skills are actually quite natural to most teaching staff, it would not be necessary to add to the already heavy burden on schools to find competent Maths teachers.

In conclusion, the standard knee jerk reaction of most people to the idea that students should continue to learn Maths until they are 18 is probably an over reaction. If we can make 5 years of progress in online lesson delivery in the space of a few weeks, then we can certainly find a way to give students the opportunity to maintain and apply their GCSE Maths skills for a few years, whilst they prepare to enter the workforce.