Maths ‘too hard for students and dons’: Universities drop subject from science courses

By
Laura Clark, Education Correspondent

Last updated at 12:14 AM on 10th February 2012

Universities are dropping maths from degree courses because students – and their lecturers –  cannot cope with it, a report warns today.

Decades of substandard maths education in schools has led to a ‘crisis’ in England’s number skills, threatening the future of the economy, it says.

Universities are being forced to dumb down degree courses requiring the use of maths, including sciences, economics, psychology and social sciences.

Maths crisis: Universities are being forced to dumb down degree courses which require the use of maths because students can't keep up

Maths crisis: Universities are being forced to dumb down degree courses which require the use of maths because students can’t keep up

Students are unable to tackle complex problems and their lecturers struggle to teach them anyway, it is claimed.

The reputation of the country’s universities and graduates is now under threat, according to the report, ‘Solving the Maths Problem’, published by the education lobby group RSA.

After looking at maths education in other countries, the authors found that lessons and qualifications in English schools were ‘not fit for purpose’.

They say that classes fail to stretch the brightest while leaving weaker pupils ill-equipped to use maths for work and family budgeting, and warn of a growing knock-on effect on universities.

‘English universities are sidelining quantitative and mathematical content because students and staff lack the requisite confidence and ability,’ the report says, adding that English universities are ‘not keeping pace’ with international standards.

Some universities are no longer advertising the level of maths needed to study particular subjects for fear of putting off applicants, the report warns.

Damage: The report, published by education lobby group RSA, suggests the reputation of English universities is under threat

Damage: The report, published by education lobby group RSA, suggests the reputation of English universities is under threat

It adds: ‘Recent research suggests that universities are marginalising mathematical content in the delivery of degree courses because English students are not capable of studying it.’

The report by the RSA – formally called the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce – suggests that all students should be required to study maths until the age of 18, with the introduction of sixth-form qualifications such as ‘Maths for Citizenship’.

England is just one of a handful of developed nations that fail to educate pupils in maths until that age, it says.

Only 15 per cent of youngsters study the subject past 16, aside from GCSE candidates taking resits to boost their grades.

The report also backs the introduction of a ‘double award’ maths GCSE, with one section concentrating on maths for everyday life and the other covering formal maths such as algebra and geometry.

‘Mathematics knowledge and qualifications are increasingly important gateways to further and higher education, for crucial life-skills and in order to respond to economic change,’ it says.

‘But the way mathematics is taught and assessed in England has not always kept pace with these changes or with the needs of learners and has left one in four adults functionally innumerate.’

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The result of dumbing down education over the last 40 years and it’s not just Maths that will pay the price. English language and grammar, History and Geography should also all be priorities in primary schools if not even later, as without sound knowledge of the basics achieving your ambition becomes very unlikely. Early teens is plenty soon enough for you to specialise in your chosen field, but so many don’t seem to realise that without the fundamentals what you would like to do suddenly becomes impossible. Imagine working in a museum with no knowledge of history, a meteorologist with no geographical knowledge, a scientist with limited Maths, or simply applying for any job but not being able to write a decent letter. Spend the education budget on the 6 to 14 age group ‘cos what you learn then determines where you end up.

In Australia, back in the Jurassic age, I attained a Phd in Advanced Mathematics and Physics. I was 16. My IQ is 191. But, and this is the most important part; I had teachers who KNEW the subject and knew how to teach US to learn it.
In the 25 years I have been here I have watched in horror as the scholastic system of this country has fallen behind the rest of the world, because no one wants to offend anyone and say: “Hey, you!” “You haven’t got the faintest idea what you are teaching, you’re fired.” And….not have given children as young as 10 so much power to be able to get away with anything they want at school.
You want to get this country OUT of the recession? Teach the upcoming generations to add/subtract/divide and multiply – just for a starting point.
Oh, and REAL English would really be a blessing to hear again. But, I live in Romford, so there is not much chance of that happening in my lifetime.

Frankly any university doing this should be stripped of its ability to confer degrees on students, as the degrees from such universities are worthless. I suppoe the old requirement for someone going to university of having 5 O levels, today 5 GCSEs at A-C including mathematics and English has long since been scrapped. Educational standards are a shadow of what they used to be in this country and it one of the signs of decline and decay of society in the UK.

To get a good teacher in mathematics is dead easy , and I’m surprised nobody seems to have thought of it.. ..hire them from Japan or China.

A good start would be getting rid of computers and all the rest of the electronic gadgetry from classrooms. Let the kids interact with the ‘real world’, maybe even open a book and use their brains for a change, instead of blindly getting everything off a screen not knowing whether it makes sense or not. All the iPads, PCs, touch-screens and mobile phones in the world will never replace a good teacher.

To get a good teacher in mathematics is dead easy , and I’m surprised nobody seems to have thought of it.. ..hire them from Japan or China.

Mathematics doesn’t need to be complicated. It really is very easy if we choose to understand and follow the simple basic rules. I strongly agree with the three Rs. Unfortunately people are allowed to hide behind the excuse of… It’s too hard and it’s boring.
However, many things in life can be difficult. Unfortunately most people choose the path of least resistance.
In my opinion, the teachers need to inject as much enthusiasm into our junior children about maths and how it influences so many things. It’s not just about how much cash can be withdrawn from the cashpoint or how much change you get.

Only the ones who do not wish to learn walk away innumerate, the difference is in the past students were not given a choice in the matter.

This is the result of the Liberal agenda. “Don’t judge the result but acknowledge the deed of good intentions.” Only Japan and China believe in results so you better know how to speak their language.

The problem starts in primary schools with teachers who, often unconsciously, pass on their own fears and inadequacies in relation to maths. It continues at high school with relatively low mathematical insight teachers and at ‘A’ level with syllabi that do not require proof, and so the possibility of a deeper understanding, and a restrictive modular approach which hinders students in gaining any overall appreciation of mathematicss. It’s my not entirely uninformed guess that the number of mathematics students graduating each year who have meaningful mathematical flair and insight is perhaps no more than one or two hundred, at best. Few of these are likely to enter the teaching profession.

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