What do they say about Singapore Maths?
"...the children... they deserve to have been thinking fluently, thinking mathematically"
"this conceptual understanding is something that I missed out at school. I learned in a procedural way, I don't fully understand it and in that respect, the Singapore Maths is having a really big impact in our school because I feel the teachers are learning alongside the children."
"Now we are much more open and we're letting the children use a greater range of methods and making them aware that there isn't just one way of doing things."
"When they just knew things, they couldn't innovate with it, they couldn't experiment with it in any way, but once they understood something, they could then play with it and use it to find other information, which makes them much more independent, and much more in control over their own learning..."
Featured in Financial Times as as world-beating school system, Singapore boasts one of the most admired education systems in the world. In particular, Singapore is routinely ranked at or near the top in global comparisons of mathematical ability.
The History of Singapore Math
The program, developed by the Singapore Ministry of Education, was introduced as the Primary Mathematics Series in 1982. Singapore Math focuses on problem-solving and developing thinking skills, rather than theoretical learning.
The Benefits of Singapore math & Why it is Successful
It’s not the content that makes Singapore Math different from other methods; it’s the philosophy. Instead of rote memorization, the framework of Singapore Math is developed around the idea that learning to problem-solve and develop mathematical thinking are the key factors to being successful in math. Without a solid foundational base, students won’t have anything to draw on when it comes to increasingly complicated math learning. Instead of watching a demonstration of a new math concept and then doing similar problems to reinforce the idea, students are tasked with mastering the theory at the onset.
Is Singapore math relevant in the UK and consistent with the UK National Curriculum?
Since 2014, Oxford University Press developed a Maths textbook series and curriculum based on the Singapore Maths approach and has seen significant positive effects on children's maths progress. The UK Government believes that investing in mastery can help raise attainment in maths, which the OECD has highlighted as a key way of improving life chances. The UK is currently ranked 26th in the world ‘PISA’ education rankings for mathematics – far behind ‘high performing jurisdictions’ such as Singapore and Shanghai, which use mastery approaches.