Are poor quality maths textbooks letting English pupils down?
29 Mar 2010, PR 62/10 Good textbooks are more important for high attainment in maths than factors such as setting or expensive IT equipment, according to a new study by King’s academics into international comparisons of maths attainment in schools. The study was commissioned by the Nuffield Foundation and undertaken by academics from the Department of Education and Professional Studies. Countries that perform consistently well in maths use carefully constructed text books as the primary means of teaching. By comparison, use of maths textbooks in English schools is relatively low, and English textbooks use routine examples and are less mathematically coherent than those in other countries. Pupils in high-performing countries are also more likely to use textbooks at home than their English counterparts. The King’s College London researchers, led by Professor Mike Askew and Dr Jeremy Hodgen, also highlighted the importance of parental values and expectations. In high attaining East Asian
