“Faddish” maths teaching practices are harming students’ learning and leading to education failure, three researchers have declared.
In a new paper, “Myths That Undermine Maths Teaching,” published by the Centre of Independent Studies, Sarah Powell, Elizabeth Hughes, and Corey Peltier said this meant maths learning wasn’t optimised.
“Myths have become so commonplace because teachers are regularly misinformed about how students learn and what works in the classroom,” Powell said.
The researchers are calling for more evidence-based mathematics education rather than inquiry learning, the current prevalent method used in classrooms.
Australian student achievement in the PISA tests has declined “more steeply and consistently” than every OECD country besides Finland since it began in 2000. This decline has been the most pronounced in maths….