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OUTGOING Western Cape MEC for Education, Debbie Schafer, has launched the Strengthened Mathematics strategy to boost and improve maths among learners in the province.
The strategy, to be rolled out for the next five years, includes professional development and training, the creation of professional learning environments, research, partnerships and parental and community support.
The strategy has been in development for the past two years and takes into account changes and developments as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I won’t unpack the detail of the strategy as you have heard from many capable officials doing so, but I hope that you have found these two days to be a celebration of Mathematics teaching, and a source of encouragement for the task ahead,” said Schafer.
“Our Maths teachers have already done incredible work to get our children interested and improving in Maths – and I am glad that the new strategy has a strong human resources component to it. You are our most valuable resource in this endeavour and you can really feel a love for the subject when we engage with these teachers.”
“We have been concerned about our province’s performance in Mathematics for some time. While we have had, and continue to have, the highest matric pass rate for Maths in the country, there has been a worrying trend in Maths participation.”
“We have also seen a gradual improvement in systemic test results, until the [COVID-19] pandemic came along and reversed a lot of those gains – especially in the early grades. So the Department had to take these learning losses into account when developing the strategy too.”
31% of 15-16 year olds in a multi-country study by the Programme for International Student Assessment said that they were nervous of doing Maths problems.
33% said they would get tense doing their Maths homework, and 60% worried that Maths classes would be difficult.
Studies also show that girls are more likely to experience this anxiety than boys are.
“This anxiety is developed from an early age, and our children look to us as adults and especially as parents for guidance. In fact, studies have shown that teachers’ and parents’ attitudes toward their students’ and children’s ability in Maths are key determinants in the development of “Maths anxiety” in learners,” she said.
“We need to think about how we speak about Maths as adults. (I’m excluding our Maths teachers here of course, because we know you all have a special love for numbers that you try to instil amongst your learners!)”
The Western Cape had the highest mathematics pass rate in the country in the 2020 National Senior Certificate, but continues to look at ways at improving its annual performance.
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