Math scores are falling in Ontario. According to an international study, Canadians aged 16 to 24 rank below average compared to 23 other developed countries. For Ontario Education Minister Liz Sandals, the mindset about mathematics is to blame: “We have a fairly deeply embedded attitude that math is hard, so it’s OK if we don’t do it.”
Canadian education authorities want to close the math gap, making math and science a priority. Schools programs will have longer math periods. Most elementary teachers coming from a humanities background and lacking confidence in teaching math, will get more training in math and science as well as help from math coaches. Math being as important as literacy in basic education, students need the highest level of support in both fields.
Image: Orbital Mechanics (Wikipedia)
