This is the third of our blogs in our series covering our Action Research Project with the North West 3 Maths Hub. Five schools are implementing Mathematics Mastery Primary while participating in in a Mastery Readiness work group. Six months in, we talked to the maths leads again, as well as the NW3 Maths Hub link, for an update on their experiences and the impact observed so far.
Let’s start with the most important thing: impact on pupils. The schools are already seeing positive changes with their pupils. They report that pupils are:
“Year one children usually struggle when they learn about time, whereas this year they all seem to grasp it at the end of each lesson. …their attainment is much stronger than previously.”
Jennifer White, Maths Lead, Christ The King Catholic Primary School
“Children are a lot more positive about the subject. Their spoken language and specifically their mathematical language have greatly improved.”
Dan Foster, Maths Lead, St Gregory's Catholic Primary School
“It's good to see talking. [The programmes] encourage the kids to talk to us. Through talking, you can see that they are obviously gathering a better understanding of different topic areas.”
Courtney Hughes, Maths Lead, Alt Bridge School
“Children can definitely think deeper and do enjoy maths. I think the buzz of maths around the schools that we visit that are doing both has been spectacular. The small steps in both programmes have helped the children to really build up resilience to maths and feel that there is nothing they can't get over. That real independence is growing within maths.”
Lisa Bradshaw, Senior Maths Hub Link, NW3 Maths Hub
It’s great that the maths leads are already seeing improvements in their pupils but it’s not always a simple road to success. There is a natural nervousness when implementing two programmes simultaneously – will they contradict each other? Will teachers be overwhelmed?
We were therefore thrilled that the teachers reported that, in practice, Mathematics Mastery and being in the work group go together well, and the joint implementation has been very carefully thought through. Leads from the AC+ team and the Maths Hub work closely together. The team delivered Mathematics Mastery induction training on a pre-scheduled work group day, so Maths Hub colleagues, maths leads and teachers attended one joint launch event. With the Maths Hub team there, it was easy to answer questions, discuss any expected issues and provide clarification on how the two programmes were intended to run alongside one another.
The following was evidenced:
“I found that both programmes follow the same principles – they both promote that expertise and the broadening and the deepening of understanding for children. They really do work together.”
Joelle Harter, Maths Lead, Blueberry Park
“The two programmes work hand in hand. Both programmes were so sensitive to our school's needs. It's not being pushed on us – you pick what is going to work with your school and then see how much support you need to embed it really well.”
Dan Foster, Maths Lead, St Gregory's Catholic Primary School
“Working in a small group with other schools in the local area, it's good to have that relationship where we can learn from each other as we're on the journey together.”
Jennifer White, Maths Lead, Christ The King Catholic Primary School
“It's good to see other schools’ ways of using it and how we can use it as well. We've all come on this Mathematics Mastery journey together, a little maths community, which is brilliant.”
Courtney Hughes, Maths Lead, Alt Bridge School
We also heard that because all schools in the work group are following the same programme, the maths leads can share and challenge one another more productively.
“Both programmes follow the teaching for mastery principles and practices. They dovetail each other and one doesn't contradict the other, they really do complement. Because everybody in those schools is using Mathematics Mastery Primary, they've got a common language. A work group in our Maths Hub, using the same resource, now has the confidence to challenge each other.”
Lisa Bradshaw, Senior Maths Hub Link, NW3 Maths Hub
As a result of building their subject knowledge and repurposing their planning time, teachers feel more confident. In particular, they value:
“Both programmes have improved confidence. They give teachers a greater understanding of the mastery approach and the principles that sit behind it and develop subject knowledge. Teachers have expressed that the learning journey within a lesson and the unpicking of the materials that children need to use, in terms of how they make connections and that deep understanding of the concept, have really helped. The resources are high quality, so teachers think about the maths and outcomes rather than having to design something from scratch.”
Lisa Bradshaw, Senior Maths Hub Link, NW3 Maths Hub
“I've been able to home in on areas of development in school and use resources from Maths Hub and from Mathematics Mastery. Subject knowledge has definitely improved. I feel like confidence has improved as well.”
Dan Foster, Maths Lead, St Gregory's Catholic Primary School
“I’d done some training before but being part of both the Maths Hub and joining Mathematics Mastery, has helped take it to the next level. It allowed me to build an action plan for making more of an outstanding journey in maths in our school. Mathematics Mastery provides clear objectives and shows us how to model and use concrete resources, which saves us planning time. The lesson resources are written by experts so we can trust that this is one of the best ways to teach maths. They’re great for ECTs too.”
Joelle Harter, Maths Lead, Blueberry Park
The early insights from this action research are promising. The schools will continue to teach Mathematics Mastery and collaborate within the Mastery Readiness work group in the 2024-25 school year. We look forward to reporting on future findings on the impact of using these complementary programmes.
Read more about the purpose of this project in our first blog post and the expectations of the schools involved in our second blog post.
Interested in developing the mastery approach in your school? Find out how you could partner with Mathematics Mastery Primary for less in 2025, thanks to a new Education Endowment Foundation subsidy. Discover how the Maths Hub in your area could also support your journey.
