Could do better. That’s the message of a report into the maths skills of primary teachers in England, which compared the ability of teachers in different countries.
England has the brightest maths brains among those countries compared, but also the worst, according to the report published on Tuesday.
Author of the report professor David Burghes of the University of Plymouth, said: “We can be reassured that England is not disgraced here, although it could clearly do much better.”
“One of the main issues for concern is the wide variation in standards across the profession; this could perhaps be explained by the relatively low entry requirements for teacher training and the lack of specialism at primary level,” he said, according to a statement by the CfBT Education Trust.
The report said that in the primary sector, England was significantly outperformed by Japan, Russia, and China, where teachers must have passed the equivalent of A Level maths. In England, they need a C in GCSE maths.
The report recommended that the bar be raised to a grade B in GCSE maths in the short-term and then further to a specially created maths AS Level for trainee primary teachers.
The research was commissioned by the CfBT Education Trust, an education consultancy.
Tony McAleavy, education director at the CfBT Education Trust, said: “Teaching needs to become a respected profession in this country, on a par with the law and medicine and then we will attract more able people to the profession.”
