Posted on 06/10/2012 4:49:45 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
Children will be introduced to times tables, mental arithmetic and fractions in the first two years of school as part of a back-to-basics overhaul of the National Curriculum.
Ministers will this week announce key tasks pupils are expected to master at each age under wide-ranging plans to counter more than a decade of dumbing down in schools.
A draft mathematics curriculum suggests that five and six year-olds will be expected to count up to 100, recognise basic fractions and memorise the results of simple sums by the end of the first year of compulsory education.
In the second year, they will be required to know the two, five and 10 times tables, add and subtract two-digit numbers in their head and begin to use graphs.
The proposals are intended to ensure that children are given a proper grounding in the basics at a young age to prepare them for the demands of secondary education and beyond.
It represents a dramatic toughening up of standards demanded in English state schools in a move designed to benchmark lessons against those found in the world’s most advanced education systems, such as Singapore, Hong Kong and parts of the United States.
At age of nine, pupils should know all their times tables up to 12x12 and confidently work with numbers up to 10 million by the end of primary school, the Government said.
Currently, children only need to know up to 10x10 and familiarise themselves with numbers below 1,000 by the age of 11.
The disclosure is made as part of a sweeping overhaul of core subjects in primary schools, with the new curriculum expected to be introduced by 2014.
Under the proposals:
- Science lessons will place a greater emphasis on early physics and ensure children learn about the solar
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
This is dangerous thinking. They could end up numerate. We need federal intervention to prevent that.
Preparing kids for the coming inflation, eh?
This is nearly as rigorous as the mathematics curriculum in use when I was in elementary school. I am glad to see the UK return to a more demanding curriculum for maths.
Maybe if the euro collapses they could go back to shillings and pences.
They still use pence. The British monetary system was decimalised long before the Continent created the Euro.
But is it too late?
Will this generation grow up looking down their noses at the previous, less educated masses?
Will they have trouble with the previous generation, that are less qualified to “scientists”, “economists”..etc., in that they will seek to remain in power.
It’s a looming battle...Jim!
Seriously, I happy to hear this, but man, going complete retro is going to clash with a very pampered less-than-educated class down the road.
I excused myself and mentioned to him I had never seen anyone type so quickly with one finger (of the hand that held the phone) and he looked at me like ... man, you ARE ancient!
Is that akin to this?
That, and $2, won’t buy you a Latte’.
Tumb wizardry........salary starting at $150,000.00.
I always thought the British were silly to put a s at the end of math.
Yes, I do know the argument for both spellings, so no need for any FReeper dissertations.
“UK: Children go back to basics in maths”
Maybe the Baby-Boomers really are starting to retire...
“It represents a dramatic toughening up of standards demanded in English state schools in a move designed to benchmark lessons against those found in the world’s most advanced education systems, such as Singapore, Hong Kong and parts of the United States.”
The only ‘parts’ of the US that have an advanced education system are homeschoolers and some private schools.
...yes, still public schools, but at least the kids might learn to count and do addition. I know what you’re thinking...you’d rather not see it here, because improving the public schools makes it more likely they won’t be going away (as they are now in Louisiana - although that’s an exception).
This is dangerous thinking. They could end up numerate. We need federal intervention to prevent that.
When that becomes apparent, will Britian try to impose testing on teachers like we have done in the US? That’s raaaaaacis and mean, you know.
What I always found a bit disconcerting over in jolly ole England was their concept of noun and verb agreement. We use the singular verb form with a collective noun. They use the plural verb form.
We say, The team is practicing.
Brits say, The Team are practicing.
We say, The UN is a pile of crap.
They say, The UN are heaven incarnate.
Just kind of jars the ears when you hear it in conversation and when reading the newspapers. But then I liked the ‘Haste Ye’ back signs when you pull out of a gas station.
I give you a lot of crap regarding crime and related things over there, so I have to give credit where it’s due. Apparently you guys are taking the lead here to clean up maths instruction - Congrats!
Good show, Brits.
In a couple of years, your children will have more math capability than anyone in the White House.
I know.
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