Madam, – Solutions offered to the decline in Ireland’s maths and literacy rankings have tended to focus on improvements to teaching methods in the classroom; however a recent report by the Eduventures research firm analysing maths literacy in the US and England suggests lack of parental involvement as being a significant factor.
In these countries (and likely also Ireland) the level of help offered by parents – in terms of homework assistance, providing for extra tutoring and keeping up-to-date with their children’s curriculum – is far behind what is the norm in many Asian countries. The report singled out Singapore in particular as a country where parents are more likely to be routinely kept informed of their children’s homework assignments and upcoming exams (rather than just after-the-fact report cards).
Parents in the US and England claim to be confident in their own ability to assist their children with maths homework, but that confidence seems to apply only to elementary-school arithmetic; and drops off sharply when higher maths concepts such as algebra and geometry are introduced.
Singaporean parents appear to better understand their own limitations and provide for extra tutoring in higher maths subjects at twice the level found in the US and England.
While changes in the way these subjects are taught in school would undoubtedly help, part of the solution would seem to be that parents themselves need to spend some time back at school. – Yours, etc,