Albania is better at maths than the UK?
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?The bad grammar in the comments is hilariously ironic, given the subject matter the posters are complaining about
I'm not surprised. Imo, the British maths system (I can only talk for GCSEs and a-levels, as I didn't do anything else) is a strange hybrid. It's often inaccessible for people who are truly awful at maths, it doesn't stretch able students enough, and it doesn't motivate those in the middle. In addition, there's no freedom to do things outside the syllabus, which is what actually motivates people to like maths, and access to the extra-curricular organisations that exist (UKMT, the maths Olympiad, etc) isn't offered in every school, even to pupils who could benefit from it. Being mathematically illiterate is socially acceptable, saying that maths is 'boring' or 'useless' goes unchallenged (even by teachers!) and there seems to be very little idea of what you can do with a maths degree beyond being a maths teacher. No wonder people aren't motivated to learn, especially if even able students aren't being taught right.
I consider myself lucky to have had a switched-on teacher who noticed my ability and let me basically do my own thing in maths lessons, but if that hadn't happened, not a chance. I spent all of Y8 being taught to add up and subtract one-digit numbers on a numberline - and this was in the top set. In the bottom set, even at GCSE, people were actually sat counting how many pencils were depicted in a pictogram, or whatever. Now, there are some people who have dyscalculia or the like and have no chance of ever being decent mathematicians, but if you give people boring and uninspiring work at an incredibly low level, they're hardly going to rise above that expectation.
I don't think it's due to a lack of 'discipline'/lack of corporal punishment, as the Daily Mail seems to suggest - it's rather the things we're teaching people and the social attitudes behind them. I'm sure there are some great maths teachers, and I've been exceptionally lucky in that department, but the fact remains that a lot of people's experiences of maths are as a boring subject taught by people who don't want to be there, in a classroom full of kids who would rather be outside. -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?IME people who say maths is fun are lyin, maths was definetly borin for me, i HATED it, me brain was nearly meltin with boredom during lessons!(Original post by kerily)
saying that maths is 'boring' or 'useless' goes unchallenged (even by teachers!) -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?What is this article implying? That all Albanians and Iranians are stupid? The Albanian school leaving age is much lower then ours I think anyway so the fact that those who cba to try hard at school have left school in Albania whereas they remain in school here, thus bringing the average down.
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?People who say it is boring are the people that can't do it tbh.(Original post by YorkieLad101)
IME people who say maths is fun are lyin, maths was definetly borin for me, i HATED it, me brain was nearly meltin with boredom during lessons! -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?Because the family in the article OP linked to are Albanian...(Original post by Kolya)
I don't understand the headline. Why compare us to Albania? Who knows anything about education standards in Albania?
Sorry, assumed OP linked to this article http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...education.htmlLast edited by Popppppy; 10-09-2011 at 21:30. -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?^ Couldn't have said it any better. My Year 8 education was the exact same thing. I learnt nothing from Year 7-10. It's a miracle I even got a good grade for Maths GCSE(Original post by kerily)
The bad grammar in the comments is hilariously ironic, given the subject matter the posters are complaining about
I'm not surprised. Imo, the British maths system (I can only talk for GCSEs and a-levels, as I didn't do anything else) is a strange hybrid. It's often inaccessible for people who are truly awful at maths, it doesn't stretch able students enough, and it doesn't motivate those in the middle. In addition, there's no freedom to do things outside the syllabus, which is what actually motivates people to like maths, and access to the extra-curricular organisations that exist (UKMT, the maths Olympiad, etc) isn't offered in every school, even to pupils who could benefit from it. Being mathematically illiterate is socially acceptable, saying that maths is 'boring' or 'useless' goes unchallenged (even by teachers!) and there seems to be very little idea of what you can do with a maths degree beyond being a maths teacher. No wonder people aren't motivated to learn, especially if even able students aren't being taught right.
I consider myself lucky to have had a switched-on teacher who noticed my ability and let me basically do my own thing in maths lessons, but if that hadn't happened, not a chance. I spent all of Y8 being taught to add up and subtract one-digit numbers on a numberline - and this was in the top set. In the bottom set, even at GCSE, people were actually sat counting how many pencils were depicted in a pictogram, or whatever. Now, there are some people who have dyscalculia or the like and have no chance of ever being decent mathematicians, but if you give people boring and uninspiring work at an incredibly low level, they're hardly going to rise above that expectation.
I don't think it's due to a lack of 'discipline'/lack of corporal punishment, as the Daily Mail seems to suggest - it's rather the things we're teaching people and the social attitudes behind them. I'm sure there are some great maths teachers, and I've been exceptionally lucky in that department, but the fact remains that a lot of people's experiences of maths are as a boring subject taught by people who don't want to be there, in a classroom full of kids who would rather be outside. -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?maths was amazing! no lies! did it for a levels and loved it(Original post by YorkieLad101)
IME people who say maths is fun are lyin, maths was definetly borin for me, i HATED it, me brain was nearly meltin with boredom during lessons!
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?I got the second highest score in Maths in my year for GCSE and according to my teacher had a "mathematical brain". I didn't find it difficult in the least but I found it incredibly tedious and not even slightly interesting.(Original post by Jacktri)
People who say it is boring are the people that can't do it tbh. -
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Re: Albania is better at maths than the UK?well thats me! im terrible at maths!(Original post by Jacktri)
People who say it is boring are the people that can't do it tbh.
