Rushed maths lead to poor mastery
Afterschool
December 12, 2012
The latest Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 survey published online showed Malaysia scoring 440 points in Form Two mathematics which is the equivalent to eighth grade worldwide, trailing global peers like Singapore who are among the world’s top scorers. Malaysian 14-year-olds were found to have performed worse than Israel who chalked up 516 points, Lithuania (502) and Lebanon (449), but beat neighbouring Thailand, which scored 427 points on tests by a narrow margin. The average score in the TIMSS is benchmarked at 500 points with countries scoring above that considered to have improved their performance in the two subjects while those falling below that mark are regarded as underperformers.This means Malaysia’s ranking in maths fell from 20th in 2007 to 26th last year while its science dropped drastically, from 21st to 32nd in the same period.The government recently launched the National Education Blueprint 2013-2025 with the aim to be in the top third of the Programme For International Student Assessment PISA test within the next 13 years.Learning maths should be an engaging and rewarding experience Likewise, England believes that its shaky foundation is only producing pupils who have superficial grasp on the subject matter. Although the country scored over the 500-point benchmark, the report from the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education (ACME) says that England is "significantly underachieving in terms of developing able mathematicians"ACME suggests that pupils should have a "deep, rigorous and challenging" school maths experience.The report calls for an enriched curriculum to be available in all mainstream schools and suggests that around 30% of pupils would find it "a challenging but satisfying experience"Some observers are against limiting the enriched curriculum to the ablest pupils.According to Sue Pope of the Association of Teachers of Mathematics, evidence has shown that no matter who the learners are, they all need challenges. All students will be more engaged if they manage to complete a task they didn't think they were capable of. |
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