Raising mathematical attainment from the Early Years
6 min read
Laura A Outhwaite, Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK
Erica Ranzato, Psychology and Human Development, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK
Jo Van Herwegen, Psychology and Human Development and Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK
In the United Kingdom, mathematical underachievement affects 20 per cent of children (DfE, 2017). Developing strong early mathematical skills is essential for children’s later educational success, as well as their future employment opportunities and mental and physical health outcomes (Butterworth et al., 2011). Estimates suggest that children’s maths attainment has been significantly impacted by the disruptions caused by COVID-19, much more so than reading (DfE, 2022). This reflects trends already visible in data prior to the pandemic, where a maths–reading attainment gap emerges in the first
Join us or sign in now to view the rest of this page
You're viewing this site as a guest, which only allows you to view a limited amount of content.
To view this page and get access to all our resources, join the Chartered College of Teaching (it's free for trainee teachers and half price for ECTs) or log in if you're already a member.
- Beilock SL, Gunderson EA, Ramirez G et al. (2010) Female teachers’ math anxiety affects girls’ math achievement. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107(5): 1860–1863.
- Butterworth B, Varma S and Laurillard D (2011) Dyscalculia: From brain to education. Science 332(6033): 1049–1053.
- Clark A, Henderson P and Gifford S (2020) Improving mathematics in the Early Years and Key Stage 1. Education Endowment Foundation. Available at: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/guidance-reports/early-maths#:~:text=Dedicate%20time%20to%20focus%20on,activities%2C%20and%20other%20curriculum%20areas (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Costa HM, Outhwaite LA and Van Herwegen J (2021) Preschool teachers’ training, beliefs and practices concerning mathematics in pre-schools in the UK: Implication for education and practice. PysArXiv. DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/rdx6c.
- Department for Education (DfE) (2017) Bold beginnings: The Reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools. Available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/reception-curriculum-in-good-and-outstanding-primary-schools-bold-beginnings (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Department for Education (DfE) (2020) Development matters: Non-statutory curriculum guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1007446/6.7534_DfE_Development_Matters_Report_and_illustrations_web__2_.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Department for Education (DfE) (2022) Opportunity for all: Strong schools with great teachers for your school. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/opportunity-for-all-strong-schools-with-great-teachers-for-your-child (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Eason SH, Scalise NR, Berkowitz T et al. (2020) Reviewing the family math literature: Recommendations for practice, policy, and research. Available at: http://education-first.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/FamilyMathReview_WhitePaper.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Farran EK (2019) Spatial ability as a gateway to STEM success. Impact 6: 55–58.
- Gilligan-Lee KA, Bradbury A, Bradley C et al. (2022) Spatial thinking in practice: A snapshot of teacher’s spatial activity use in the early years’ classroom. PysArXiv. DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/zqc2x.
- Gilmore C, Göbel SM and Inglis M (2018) An Introduction to Mathematical Cognition. Abingdon: Routledge.
- Hawes ZC, Gilligan-Lee KA and Mix KS (2022) Effects of spatial training on mathematics performance: A meta-analysis. Developmental Psychology 58(1): 112.
- Hawes Z, Moss J, Caswell B et al. (2019) Relations between numerical, spatial, and executive function skills and mathematics achievement: A latent-variable approach. Cognitive Psychology 109: 68–90.
- Husain F, Chidley S, Piggott H et al. (2019) Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) reforms: Pilot report. Education Endowment Foundation. Available at: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and-evaluation/projects/early-years-foundation-stage-profile-pilot (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Macmillan L and Tominey E (2019) Parental inputs and socio-economic gaps in early child development. IZA Institute of Labor Economics. Available at: https://docs.iza.org/dp12792.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Maloney EA, Ramirez G, Gunderson EA et al. (2015) Intergenerational effects of parents’ math anxiety on children’s math achievement and anxiety. Psychological Science 26(9): 1480–1488.
- Mutaf-Yildiz B, Sasanguie D, De Smedt B et al. (2020) Probing the relationship between home numeracy and children’s mathematical skills: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology 11: 2074.
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2020) Early learning and child well-being: A study of five-year-olds in England, Estonia, and the United States. Available at: www.oecd.org/education/school/early-learning-and-child-well-being-study/early-learning-and-child-well-being-3990407f-en.htm (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Outhwaite LA, Anders J and Van Herwegen J (2022) Mathematics attainment falls behind reading in the early primary school years. CEPEO working paper no. 22–06. Available at: https://repec-cepeo.ucl.ac.uk/cepeow/cepeowp22-06.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Outhwaite LA, Early E, Herodotou C et al. (2022) Can maths apps add value to learning? A systematic review and content analysis. Nuffield Foundation. Available at: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10149354/1/Can%20Maths%20Apps%20Add%20Value%20to%20Young%20Childrens%20Learning%20A%20Systematic%20Review%20and%20Content%20Analysis_Web_final_v2.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Outhwaite LA and Van Herwegen J (2022) Understanding how we can raise attainment in mathematics. Briefing note. UCL. Available at: https://repec-cepeo.ucl.ac.uk/cepeob/cepeobn15.pdf (accessed 26 July 2022).
- Ranzato E, Van Herwegen J and Outhwaite LA (2021) The development of the ‘Maths@Home’ app for parents of children aged 2–6 years. In: BPS Developmental Section Annual Conference, UK, 15–17 September 2021.
- Schaeffer MW, Rozek CS, Berkowitz T et al. (2018) Disassociating the relation between parents’ math anxiety and children’s math achievement: Long-term effects of a math app intervention. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 147(12): 1782–1790.
- Skene K, O’Farrelly CM, Byrne EM et al. (2022) Can guidance during play enhance children’s learning and development in educational contexts? A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Child Development 93(4): 1–19.
- Sullivan A, Ketende S and Joshi H (2013) Social class and inequalities in early cognitive scores. Sociology 47(6): 1187–1206.
- von Spreckelsen M, Dove E, Coolen I et al. (2019) Let’s talk about maths: The role of observed ‘maths‐talk’ and maths provisions in preschoolers’ numeracy. Mind, Brain, and Education 13(4): 326–340.
- Zhang X, Hu BY, Zou X et al. (2020) Parent–child number application activities predict children’s math trajectories from preschool to primary school. Journal of Educational Psychology 112(8): 1521.
Please login to comment
0 Comments
Oldest
