Following her recent speech at the Labour conference, the RSS has written to Shadow Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson.
The letter welcomes her focus on improving maths education from an early age, particularly by using ‘real-world’ maths to emphasise its applicability and importance in every-day life. We also highlight the important role statistics and data play in achieving these goals:
‘We believe that statistical and data literacy are of particular importance to equip young people with the skills they need to interrogate and interpret the world around them.’
The letter goes on to discuss the need to improve the situation for the ‘forgotten third’ – those who do not achieve a pass grade or above at maths GCSE. As we also set out in our response to the Prime Minister’s Maths to 18 proposals, the RSS is suggesting changes to the curriculum and assessment that would equip all students with relevant skills and improve engagement in and enjoyment of studying maths, statistics, and data.
Finally, the letter recognises that, in order to implement change, improvements in teacher supply and investment in skills and in the curriculum are needed, and it expresses our wish to engage in further conversations with the Shadow Education Secretary or her team regarding Labour’s education policy.
Read the full letter here.
A summary of our response to the Prime Minister’s Math’s to 18 proposals can be found here, or read our full response.