Week 2

Highlight, discuss and reflect on the current challenges in mathematics education in Australia.

I came from a time when Mathematics standardised scores were indicator of intelligence. Thus, I was forced to be an academic servant than be a wise man knowing how to connect and perform the knowledge being taught and gained in daily activities. Learning that there have been dramatic changes on the curriculum these days, I felt enlightened to re-learn Mathematics using the new curriculum and eventually teach with confidence to young learners.

The flexibility of teachers “to make decisions about the sequence of learning, the emphasis to be given to particular areas of content, and any adjustments required based on the needs, interests and abilities of their students” (NSW Board of Studies, 2012, p. 1) is a much better approach than following some previous traditions of school mathematics in Australia which were methods of rote teaching and learning connected with rigidly defined courses of study, prescribed text books, and written examinations and preparation of students for tertiary courses as the core reason of studying mathematics (Ellerton and Clements, 1988). This also adheres to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (2018) “know your students and how they learn” and Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers standards for excellence teaching in mathematics Domain 1.1: Knowledge of students and 1.3: Knowledge of students’ learning of mathematics (AAMT, 2006).

Having the National Numeracy Learning Progression indicators can be beneficial “to identify the numeracy performance of individual student” (ACARA, 2020, p. 6) as they have different abilities and pacing if teachers have skills in discerning students’ numeracy capabilities and if the class size is small. However, for teachers, tensions like the existence of schools depends on the rating of the students results in testing such as NAPLAN and PISA (Attard, 2020). Thus, the possibility of neglecting individual needs in understanding mathematics might still happen.

References

Attard, C. (21 January, 2020). Mathematics education in Australia: new decade, new opportunities?. Retrieved from https://engagingmaths.com/2020/01/21/mathematics-education-in-australia-new-decade-new-opportunities/

Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers Inc. [AAMT]. (2006). Standards for excellence in teaching mathematics in Australian schools. Retrieved from http://www.aamt.edu.au

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA]. (2020). National numeracy learning progression. [online document]. Retrieved from https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/media/3635/national-numeracy-learning-progression.pdf

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership [AITSL]. (2018). Australian professional standards for teachers. [online document]. Retrieved from https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/national-policy-framework/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers.pdf?sfvrsn=5800f33c_64

Ellerton, N. F., & Clements, M.A. (1988). Reshaping school mathematics in Australia 1788-1988. Australian Journal of Education, 32(3), 387-405. https://doi.org/10.1177/000494418803200310

NSW Board of Studies. (2012). Guide to the new NSW syllabuses: kindergarten to year 6. Retrieved from Australian Catholic University LEO website: https://leo.acu.edu.au/mod/resource/view.php?id=2927145