Curriculum and assessment 2028

Overview

Maths Horizons’ vision is for England to be one of the world's highest-performing countries in maths. We believe almost all pupils can achieve a standard pass in GCSE Maths, and that around a third of pupils should achieve at least a Grade 7 and progress to advanced mathematical study. Beyond examination outcomes, all young people should leave maths education better equipped to reason, problem solve and use maths confidently in a wide range of contexts. We believe this ambition is achievable over the next decade.

The figure below (see full report) shows the highest level of attainment in maths by age 19 for students in England: as it was in 1995; as it is today, after decades of progress; then, as we believe it could be by 2035.

 

 

The Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR)

The first phase of Maths Horizons built an evidence base through research, insights and sector-wide collaboration that helped shape the thinking in the CAR. We’re proud that our work is reflected in this and the government’s response and believe it represents progress towards strengthening achievement and building student confidence, enjoyment and a lasting sense of the value of maths.  

Our second phase is focused on embedding rich problem solving and reasoning in the classroom for all students. Non-routine problem solving is valuable because the solution pathway is not immediately obvious, so students must explore how to approach the problem, including selecting strategies, making connections, reasoning logically and often persevering through multiple steps.

As well as being central to maths education, reasoning and problem solving are highly valued by employers. In our first phase polling, around two thirds of employers reported that the typical roles in their organisation engage several times per week in “breaking down problems, finding patterns, critical thinking, and strategic planning” (67% of employers) and in “reading, understanding and applying diagrams, graphs, tables, spreadsheets and statistics’ (65%). More than two in five employers told us that they would not hire someone if they did not have these skills. Ensuring that all pupils leave school equipped to solve problems for employment and everyday life will not be achieved simply by increasing exposure to real-world problems. Students also need secure and flexible mathematical knowledge, combining fluency with an understanding of mathematical structures, as well as the ability and confidence to tackle non-routine problems across a range of contexts.

We believe that the new programmes of study and revised statutory assessments must enable problem solving and reasoning to be fully embedded in classroom practice or miss a vital opportunity to give every pupil the chance to benefit from the value of engaging in problem solving and reasoning. We therefore suggest the following changes to make this a reality.

Curriculum and Assessment 2028

Maths Horizons advises four curriculum and assessment changes that we think will support the goal of a richer maths curriculum with problem solving at its heart.

Suggested changes
Curriculum	1	Rebalance content from upper primary to lower secondary, allowing more time for knowledge to be secure and flexible, including opportunities for problem solving and reasoning for all students
	2	Greater specificity and coherence within the programme of study about the mathematical meaning and purpose of what students are taught
	3	Make problem solving and reasoning accessible to all by explicitly identifying the mathematical content from prior years required to solve problems in a variety of contexts
Assessment	4	Incentivise the teaching of problem solving and reasoning by increasing the proportion of marks allocated to problem solving and reasoning in key stage 2 SATs and GCSEs.

We believe each of these changes is necessary to increase the depth and breadth of problem solving in English classrooms. We will share the thinking behind each one in more detail with the aim of informing the process of creating England’s new maths curriculum and revised statutory assessments.

Maths Horizons is an independent programme drawing on an extensive evidence base to inform and support system change in maths education.