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Maths?

TheCatWoman

Are we Brits genetically bad at maths, poorly taught or what? It seems so many of us ND and NT really struggle with it and have done for years, so much so that it almost seems to be a point of national pride that we're collectively so bad at it.

All I know is that I'm terrible at it and couldn't pass a GCSE grade 3, even with special tutoring, it meant I failed my access course, luckily it didn't stop me going to uni because I didn't need maths for history. What makes it even worse is I seem unable to use a calculator either, I can put the same numbers in 3 times and get 3 different answers.

  • in reply to Pegg

    I agree that many people in this country have a thing about being anti-intellectual and if you come from a working class back ground, people will treat you differently and even go as far as to bully you for being educated.

    Is maths a subject thats enjoyed or endured at A level? Do people do it so as they can get to the university of thier choice, or do they do it because they enjoy it or because it will be useful in the course they're doing.?

    When there was a swap between maths teachers between here and China, where they traditionally do very well at maths, the Chinese teachers said they thought we taught to widely and not deeply enough.

  • Are we bad at maths? Pass rate for GCSE at 16 is around 70%, so most are ok at maths, good enough.

    We have an anti-knowledge culture in this country - so long as that knowledge is academically acquired. E.g. Maths in popular culture is presented as boring, inaccessible, the preserve of intellectuals - it's not cool in other words. 

    I'm not convinced that these perceptions reflect reality. 

  • in reply to TheCatWoman
    TheCatWoman said:
    I've tried lots of calculators and its always the same

    Do you have dyscalculia? It is like dyslexia but for numbers.

    https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23949-dyscalculia

    It could lead to you entering a digit that is different to the one you think you are.

    It could also be motor skill related - do you fnd yourself struggling with accuracy with your fine motor control? Dyspraxia is one form of this that seems more common with autists?

    I'm just thinking that understanding the cause could be useful so you know the reason and it loses some of its mystique and you can use techniques to manage it when you really need to use it.

  • I love maths and have a degree in maths.

    In fact maths is the most popular A level subject.

  • in reply to ArchaeC

    I've tried lots of calculators and its always the same, they work fine for other people. I'm barely numerate at primary school level let alone at a higher level.

  • Perhaps you broke the calculator? Try the calculation on three different calculators.

    I used to be a secondary school teacher, among other jobs, and GCSE maths was needed for entry into my PGCE course which qualified me to teach. I passed the maths exam, but I’m not brilliant mathematically. I have been described as highly numerate which probably comes from my lifelong repetitive behaviour of counting. I can do mental calculations quickly. 

  • Could it be that you have dyscalculia, the numerical equivalent to dyslexia? I know I have. It is not simply being bad at maths but a lack of understanding of numbers. A page of sums looks like a foreign language to me.