Maths teachers want better professional development, review finds

There is ‘widespread dissatisfaction’ among maths teacher over the professional development they receive, especially a lack of subject-specific training, a new practice review has found.

The review, from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), aimed to understand what the current pressures, priorities and practices are when teaching maths in state-funded secondary schools in England. It drew on data from a survey of 330 maths subject leads as well as focus group workshops.

Among the findings was that teachers were often dissatisfied with the professional development available to them, with senior leaders in schools and trusts not necessarily prioritising subject-specific learning. In secondary schools with historically stronger provision, department time was often allocated to improving the quality of maths teaching. Department-led professional development in these schools supports teachers’ understanding of effective teaching of specific parts of the maths curriculum. In contrast, teachers in schools with historically weaker provision often received professional development at a whole-school level on generic themes and were then given time as a department to consider how this might improve maths provision. A positive finding on professional development was that the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM) and the Maths Hubs it supports have been instrumental in driving improvement in maths education, although so far the impact of them has largely been at primary level.

Previous research in 2022 suggested that a shortage of specialist teachers meant that approaching half of secondary schools were using non-specialist teachers to teach maths. The EEF review notes that this context is leading many schools to deploy the most highly qualified teachers to ‘high-stakes’ classes, such as those preparing for examinations. This can leave younger pupils and/or lower attainers without specialist teachers. The review notes that while leaders’ choices about where to deploy staff aim to minimise the impact of teacher shortages on Key Stages 4 and 5, there may be long term effects of leaving younger pupils and low attainers without a specialist maths teacher.

Another finding, from the survey of teachers commissioned for the review, was that half thought that mathematical learning is best consolidated through homework. The EEF note that this could present a challenge for students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds who may struggle to fully access homework, particularly if access to online platforms is require - just over half of those surveyed (51 per cent) used maths-specific software platforms weekly to consolidate learning

Commenting on the EEF review Mark Boylan, professor of education at Sheffield Hallam University, said: ‘Although there are a lot of similarities in how schools teach maths, there is also a lot of variation when it comes to details, including on key issues around when and how pupils are taught important parts of the curriculum. So the practice review’s findings could support reflection on the best approaches for teachers to use for their pupils.’

Full review: https://tinyurl.com/yzb3tz54