Mathematics
05-04-2025
Scientists discover a better way for kids to learn math
ByAndrei Ionescu
Earth.com staff writer
Children’s first encounters with math usually happen at the breakfast table or on the playground, not in a classroom. Developmental scientists have long known that these everyday experiences – like counting blocks or footsteps to the front door – nurture an intuitive sense of quantity.
According to a comprehensive report, a strong “number sense” builds arithmetic fluency, which later supports success in algebra, geometry, and adult earnings.
Yet the route from cereal-box counting to fluent calculation has been hotly debated: Should teachers focus on memorizing multiplication tables, or on fostering deeper conceptual reasoning? The new review concludes that the debate sets up a false choice.
New framework for learning math
Drawing on behavioral experiments, longitudinal research, neuroimaging data, and classroom design studies, the researchers propose a three-stage cycle in which facts and concepts reinforce one another.
They believe fluency starts with understanding, improves with timed practice, and deepens through reflection and discussion.
“We want to be clear: Educators don’t have to choose between timed practice and rich classroom discussions,” said study lead author Nicole McNeil of the University of Notre Dame .
“A carefully structured approach – pairing brief, timed sessions that strengthen facts in memory with purposeful reasoning and discussion activities that weave those facts into an integrated knowledge network – gives students the fluency they need to succeed.”
Brain shifts with practice
The researchers frame math learning as a dynamic movement between two knowledge states. Young children start with implicit insights: they can combine two sets of crackers and anticipate a larger pile without articulating why.
Over time, guided instruction turns these hunches into explicit strategies, such as “counting on from the bigger number” or recognizing that addition is commutative.
With continued, targeted practice – ideally in short, carefully timed bursts – these explicit strategies become automatic, freeing up mental resources for higher-level problem solving.
Neuroimaging studies cited in the report reveal that as this process unfolds, brain activation patterns begin to shift. Brain activity shifts from effortful reasoning to rapid recall, reflecting the child’s move from counting slowly to instant retrieval.
No more math wars
Because fluency develops through intertwined conceptual and procedural growth, the authors argue, classroom instruction should regularly cycle between the two.
Early progress monitoring is recommended to spot gaps in mental number representations. Explicit teaching of thinking strategies, such as making tens, can help address those gaps.
The research team also suggests using retrieval exercises designed to be brief enough to encourage speed only after accuracy has been achieved.
Each timed practice session should end with group discussion where students explain methods and link facts to broader ideas. This “explain–practice–explain” rhythm avoids the pitfalls of rote memorization while ensuring that knowledge can be deployed automatically when needed, noted the researchers.
Math skills shape futures
The paper’s authors and an accompanying commentary by Melissa E. Libertus of the University of Pittsburgh highlight the practical stakes.
Students who leave elementary school fluent in arithmetic adapt more readily to algebraic symbolism, grasp fraction magnitudes more accurately, and solve multi-step word problems more efficiently.
Longitudinal data link early math skills to later academic attainment and even adult income. The experts argue that arithmetic fluency is essential in today’s data-driven world – just as important as reading.
Training teachers with research
Despite the strong evidence base, many teacher-preparation programs devote limited time to the cognitive science of math learning. The researchers call for more explicit coursework that helps future educators evaluate instructional materials through the lens of learning research.
Digital tutoring systems and adaptive practice apps can help – but only when educators integrate them into conceptual discussions and reflective reasoning.
Future research should explore how parents’ math anxiety affects children and how digital tools can personalize practice while preserving depth.
A new classroom model
The report arrives at a moment when timed tests and “math wars” rhetoric still spark controversy. Speed and understanding aren’t opposing goals – they build on each other in a well-designed learning process.
By letting children’s initial intuitions surface, honing them through targeted practice, and weaving them back into rich conceptual networks, educators can cultivate the kind of fluency that supports future math learning. This fluency also aids in real-world problem solving.
The science of learning, the authors argue, shows that arithmetic proficiency is built not on memorization alone and not on exploration alone, but on a deliberate interplay of the two. This is proof that, in mathematics as in many areas of education, balance and evidence go hand in hand.
Nancy Jordan of the University of Delaware , Alexandria Viegut of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire , and Daniel Ansari of Western University are co-authors of the study.
The research is published in the journal Psychological Science in the Public Interest .
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UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Hundreds of South African schools don’t offer Mathematics
South Africa’s Department of Basic Education (DBE) has revealed that 464 public schools do not offer Mathematics to their learners.
135 of the schools that don’t offer Mathematics are in KwaZulu-Natal, 84 are in the Eastern Cape, 78 are in Limpopo, and 61 are in the Western Cape.
The other provinces fare better. Gauteng and the North West have 31 schools each, the Northern Cape 19, Free State 14, and Mpumalanga 11.
The Department of Basic Education explained that learners must select subject streams in Grade 10 that align with their interests and prospective career paths.
“While Mathematics remains a high-priority subject, schools may not have sufficient resources or demand to offer both Mathematics and Mathematical Literacy,” it said.
Additionally, some schools face challenges such as limited enrolment in the Mathematics stream, making it unviable to run a full class.
There is also a shortage of qualified Mathematics teachers, and budgetary or timetabling constraints limit subject offerings.
The department said it actively promotes the offering of Mathematics in all schools and has launched interventions to achieve this goal.
It has monthly Mathematics meetings with all provincial education departments to share best practices, address challenges, and promote increased enrolment in Mathematics.
Schools and learners are also consistently encouraged to choose Mathematics over Mathematical Literacy where appropriate.
“Provinces are also supported in strengthening teacher capacity and learner performance in Mathematics,” the department said.
There is ongoing professional development, including a focus on methodology, with the aim of enhancing learner understanding and retention in Mathematics.
“The Minister of Basic Education, together with the DBE, is committed to improving learner participation and performance in Mathematics,” it said.
“Several strategic interventions have been implemented, many of which align with the findings from recent global and regional assessments, including TIMSS, SEACMEQ V, and SASE.”
South Africa’s poor Mathematics performance
The number of matric learners in South Africa opting to take mathematics has steadily declined from 46% in 2011 to 34% in 2023.
In 2024, the numbers continued to decline, with only 255,762 learners registered for mathematics, compared to 268,100 in 2023.
Only a small percentage of those who choose the subject achieve the necessary 60% pass to pursue university programmes in accounting, actuarial science, and engineering.
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube blamed South Africa’s education system for the decline in the number of matriculants taking mathematics.
Gwarube said the decline in Mathematics threatens South Africa’s ability to advance in science, innovation, and economic development.
She pointed to foundational deficits accumulating over time, limiting students’ abilities to succeed in higher grades.
She pointed to international studies, like the 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study revealed that South African learners finished last.
The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is the largest pool of trend data from any international large-scale assessment in education.
Although the assessment was on learners in the fourth and eighth grades, South Africa sent students in their fifth and ninth grades.
The official reason is that local grade five and nine learners “better match curricula and maintain trend measurement”.
However, the reality is that South African learners are so poor that the international exams are much too difficult for them.
To compensate for our poor learners and education system, South Africa assessed learners who had one more year of education to try to match their global counterparts.
59 countries participated in TIMSS 2023 in the fourth grade. Despite assessing older and more experienced learners, South Africa finished last.
8 Reasons why taking away Maths and Science from our schools is bad…REALLY BAD!
Mail & Guardian: Article by James Lees
South Africa cannot afford to have its children not learning Maths and Science . Here are eight reasons why declining numbers of Matriculants writing Maths and Science is not good. James Lees of the Mail & Guardian recently wrote a very troubling piece titled: ‘Youth Lose Out Because Many Schools Don’t Offer Maths and Science.’ A notable takeaway from the article is that in 2021, matriculants in over 1 100 schools around the country did not write a mathematics or a science examination.
Here are eight reasons why that has to change:
1. Maths and Science are important. “Maths and science aren’t everything” – maybe, but they are a lot. These are arguably among the most important subjects you could ever learn. As a developing country, we can never have too many people skilled in maths and science. They are essential contributors to the development of the country in many industries – medicine, infrastructure development, technology and finance, to name a few.
2. Numbers are trending in the wrong direction. Lees notes a growth in no-science schools – from 512 in 2013 to 781 in 2021. Further, six provinces saw an increase in the number of matriculants not writing maths. Expect such numbers to grow if no change is made.
3. This will lead to a shortage of manpower in the Maths/Science fields… …including fewer doctors, engineers (electrical, electronic, IT, chemical, civil and so on), scientists, mathematicians – that’s off the top of my head. Plus, we’re bound to have fewer teachers of the subjects related to all of those fields. We could end up being caught in a very vicious cycle.
4. Other learning areas will be congested, leading to surpluses in the workplace, and growing unemployment. If students only learn non-science/maths subjects, they will only qualify for work in nonscience/maths industries. Although there are many opportunities outside maths and science, they won’t be enough. In an economy where jobs are scarce, driving the youth to a finite number of fields in which to operate will surely condemn many of them to joblessness.
5. The numbers are indicative of an even bigger problem… …Poor quality teaching and learning. Lees notes that only 23% of the matriculants who did write mathematics in 2021 recorded marks of 50% and higher. For Science? Only 27%. More must be done.
6. We are going to be left behind in the 4th industrial revolution. We are knee-deep into the world of advanced robotics, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence. Technology is developing by the minute. Our chances of becoming a notable contributor in such development get slimmer with every child that is not learning maths and science.
7. Countries that have high performance in maths & science tend to do well economically. Surprise, surprise – the world’s most affluent states lead in maths and science and the innovation stemming from them. According World Population Review, the top 10 countries with the highest number of leading mathematics scientists are headed by the USA and include the UK, Germany, France, Canada, China, Italy, and Switzerland. Key to modern-day economic development is technology – maths and science are the language of technology.
8. Repeat reasons 1-7. Not joking. The education department must attend to this issue quickly before it gets even more out of hand. We are a country desperately in need of better strategies to help improve our maths and science numbers (both in quality and quantity). The importance of these learning areas cannot be overstated. Source: #FreedomToLEARN.