Writing in Tuesday's Education Guardian (14/12/2010), Warwick Mansell reports that results from an international testing study in early December triggered a fresh round of soul searching after they revealed that the UK is falling down the global rankings for reading, science and particularly maths!
New research shows England, Wales and N. Ireland finishing bottom of another kind of league table, which compares countries according to the number of young people persisting with any kind of maths education post -16.
The study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation read more shows that among 24 states, the three 'home' nations; England, Wales and N. Ireland are the only ones where fewer than 20% of pupils take mathemetics in any form during what the researchers classify as the 'upper' secondary years.
The remaining countries all have post-16 participation rates for maths of more than 50% with rates running at more than 95% in eight of them including, Sweden, Finland, Japan and Korea. Not all these countries have young people taking maths at 'A' level standard. However, when the comparison is made with those strictly taking advanced level, the UK is still towards the bottom of the research.
The advanced level take up in the UK ranges from 11% in Wales through 13% in England to15% in N.Ireland and 23% in Scotland, with a UK average of between 13% and 14%.
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the business lobby group, have been calling for all young people to continue with some form of maths or numeracy education post 16, whether they were on an academic track or training in the workplace.
It has been estimated that young people leaving school with poor maths skills are costing the economy £2.4 billion per year!
Without an 'uplift' in mathematics and numeracy capabilities, the UK will find itself falling behind in fields such as, environmental technology, pharmaceuticals and the creative industries.
Maths is arguably the foundation of the whole of science and technological understanding. The country needs more maths people. The situation in this country is not entirely bleak with numbers taking 'A' level actually rising over recent years.
However, the Nuffield paper argues that 'A' level maths is still attracting a lower proportion of students than it did in the mid-90's.
Jeremy Hodgen, of King's College London who led the research says that many people who need to be proficient with numerical concepts, such as future primary schol teachers and nurses, are missing out in the UK by dropping the subject at 16. He enlarges on the point about primary school teachers by stating that by the time they have completed their post graduate qualification and taken a post, they will be in their mid 20's with no maths taken from when they were 16!
Should the subject be compulsory post 16?
Eight countries in the study require all pupils whether in academic or vocational education to persevere with it. Within the UK, however, recent attempts to curtail subject choice post 16, or even to promote greater breadth of study have floundered in the past. The Curriculum 2000 reforms which signalled an opportunity for young people to include breadth in their choices largely failed in its mission.
If compulsion is not an attractive option perhaps the government should consider offering a more attractive range of mathemetical options pitched to pupils who gain C and B grades at maths GCSE, who tend now not to opt for A level. The Advisory Committee on Mathemetics Education (Acme) is advocating a new set of maths"pathways" at post 16 level to tackle what it has identified as an inadequate range of options for those students not committed to A-levels.
There can be no doubt that over the coming months the government will be looking at how to engage more young people in mathematical 'pathways' post 16.
Prospect of becoming NEET rises by 40 per cent for those with A-levels - 2010
As young people worry about their A-level results, new statistics show that no matter what their grade they will face a tough year. Research by the IPPR and the Private Equity Foundation (PEF) shows that young people due to find out A-level results on Thursday 19th August could have a difficult year ahead of them despite their achievements. Their risk of becoming so-called "NEET" (Not in Education, Employment or Training) has increased by over 40 per cent since the onset of the recession.
Just over 9 per cent of those with Level 3 qualifications (which includes A-levels) were classified as NEET in the first quarter of 2010, up from 6.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2008.
And recent graduates, who might have hoped that a degree would cushion them from unemployment, are likely to get an even bigger shock. Graduates have seen the fastest increase in the numbers becoming NEET, with their risk growing by 50 per cent over the last two years.
However the ippr's new analysis of the Labour Force Survey also tells another story: young people with no qualifications remain far more vulnerable than their more highly qualified counterparts. A shocking 36.1 per cent of young people who've left school empty-handed are NEET. This is far higher than those with degrees (11.4%) and those with Level 3 qualifications (9.1%). The percentage of young people with no qualifications who are NEET has hardly changed since the recession started, suggesting a long-term problem whose causes are not connected to the recent economic upheaval.
Lisa Harker, Co-Director of the IPPR, said:
"While it is true that those with A-levels and degrees have seen their risk of becoming NEET increase the fastest, they remain much better protected than young people who have no qualifications, and they are likely to do better when the economy recovers.
"The challenges facing young people with no qualifications are not just the result of the recession. Over a third of this group were already NEET before the recession began. This suggests a long-term problem whose causes are not connected to the recent economic upheaval. It is important not to lose sight of this challenge at a time when many are focusing on the high numbers of graduates who cannot find work."
Shaks Ghosh, Chief Executive of the Private Equity Foundation, said:
"Getting a first job has always been tough but these statistics highlight just how hard the recession has made the transition from school to work, for so many. I fear our young people will not feel the positive effects of our fragile economic recovery this year.
"That said, this research also highlights how vital qualifications are. Those with A-levels and degrees will be better placed when the job market recovers. For those with nothing, the outlook is bleak. These young people risk not just being left behind for the next year but years after. They need real targeted help or could be entirely lost to the world of work and to their communities."
Review of UCAS Tariff announced
UCAS has announced a comprehensive review of the Tariff, the points-based system used by admissions officers to determine the suitability of qualifications for progression into higher education.
The review comes at a time when the spotlight is on the higher education sector to meet the needs of both applicants and business, with suitability and availability of qualifications increasingly under scrutiny. This makes a mechanism that specifically recognises and communicates a qualification's value for progression to higher education essential.
Professor Sir Robert Burgess, Chair of the UCAS Board and Vice Chancellor at the University of Leicester, said:
'The UCAS Tariff has been very valuable to the higher education sector which uses it in many different ways to support the admissions process and understanding of qualifications. A review is appropriate at a time when applicants are using an increasingly diverse range of qualifications to progress in to higher education.'
Mary Curnock Cook, UCAS Chief Executive said:
'Getting onto your chosen course in higher education has always been competitive. UCAS wants to make sure that everyone can understand the currency of particular qualifications for entry to particular courses and can make a realistic and successful application.'
The Tariff was designed ten years ago when A level qualifications predominated for entry to higher education - this situation is changing, with around 50% of UK-based applicants in 2009 applying with qualifications that did not include A levels (as compared with around 32% in 1999).
The review will also address concerns that the Tariff is being used in ways for which it was not intended:
• The 'UCAS points score', determined by the Tariff, is often taken at face value, meaning that neither applicants nor HE institutions gain a full understanding of a qualification's suitability.
• Given the range of different higher education courses available, the Tariff score does not show how a particular qualification could be more appropriate to support admission to some courses than others.
• Not all qualifications used to apply for higher education (by both home and international students) are on the UCAS Tariff so it isn't a universal measure.
• There is some evidence that graduate recruitment schemes and internships are using online applications which include tariff requirements in order to proceed with an application.
Mary Curnock Cook, UCAS Chief Executive continues:
'UCAS is facilitating this review, which will be highly consultative and led by the HE sector itself. We are expecting the process to take between 18 and 24 months and throughout that period it will remain business as usual for the Tariff until the review is finalised. This announcement therefore has no impact on applications during 2010 or 2011.'
For more information on the Tariff and for factsheets on the announcement visit
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