Last week my two young daughters marched into nursery clutching their favourite books for World Book Day, joining hundreds of thousands of children across the country dressed as their literary heroes. It was a joyous celebration of stories.
Today is the International Day of Mathematics - a far quieter affair, with no costumes and less fanfare. But what if we celebrated maths with the same enthusiasm as reading? What might change?
This year’s theme, “Mathematics, Art and Creativity”, evokes vibrancy, delight and the power of imagination.
For maths lovers across the UK, it is a perfect fit: whether in solving intricate puzzles, appreciating symmetry in design or recognising mathematical patterns in music, there is much to love about the intersection of maths and creativity.
Yet for many others, their experience of maths - particularly in school - has been anything but inspiring.
Spreading the joy of maths
At Purposeful Ventures, we are on a mission to ensure that more young people enjoy maths and approach it with confidence. Our new report, published today, investigates attitudes towards maths in England.
We examine how young people - and their parents, carers and teachers - think and feel about maths, and how we can build a national coalition to improve maths confidence and enjoyment.
Here’s what we know: children’s early encounters with maths are often joyful. Young children are natural-born mathematicians, drawn to shape, number and logic. In primary school, enthusiasm remains high: our recent poll shows that 67 per cent enjoy maths in primary school. Maths for them has playfulness and wonder.
However, something shifts in early secondary school. Enjoyment subsides. Although this is a global phenomenon, according to the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (Timss) 2019, the problem is particularly stark in England: the proportion of students who dislike maths more than doubles from 23 per cent at age 10 to 50 per cent at age 14 - one of the sharpest increases worldwide.
More on maths:
Why does this happen? Firstly, too many students progress through maths without mastering foundational concepts, making it increasingly difficult to grasp new topics.
These problems compound over time, reinforcing a cycle of struggle and low confidence. As a former trustee of Get Further, I have seen first-hand how making students sit GCSE resits, rather than offering a fresh start, can deepen feelings of frustration and failure.
Secondly, there is the deeper cultural issue. It is common for people to say, “I am not a maths person,” sometimes with self-deprecation, sometimes as a badge of honour. In England, there’s a common belief that maths proficiency depends on innate talent - you can either do it or you can’t. By contrast, in East Asian countries, maths proficiency is seen as the product of good teaching and effort.
These narratives matter. They influence how a 14-year-old sitting at their classroom desk responds when maths gets hard - and maths does get hard, for each of us, at some point. ”Do I ask for help or do I disengage?” “Can I crack this, or is it a lost cause?”
What can we do? Our report says that attitudes towards maths can be passed from parent to child, shaped by school experience, and influenced by cultural osmosis. Therefore, families, schools and wider society all have a role to play in fostering positive maths attitudes.
The way forward
1. Supporting parents
A child’s maths confidence is strongly linked to their parents’ enjoyment of the subject. Parents are given extensive guidance on reading but comparable support for maths is almost non-existent.
We need a national “family maths” movement, like the one gaining momentum in the US, that helps parents bring enjoyable maths into everyday life, from games to casual conversations.
2. Enhancing excitement
In schools, passionate teachers can ignite a young person’s love of maths. England needs more maths enthusiasts to join the profession, especially given the current shortfall of around 5,000 specialist maths teachers (17 per cent of the maths workforce).
The government’s review of curriculum and assessment is a vital opportunity to refresh the system to foster curiosity and problem-solving, enabling greater engagement and learning.
Purposeful Ventures is supporting this effort through the Maths Horizons Project, an independent review of maths curriculum and assessment in England.
3. Shifting the narrative
Finally, we must change the conversation on maths. The media can showcase diverse maths stories and highlight the joy of “productive struggle”, which is something everyone can experience - the exhilaration of an “aha” moment when a tricky problem is cracked. By doing so, it can challenge stereotypes about who belongs in the subject and dispel the myth that maths ability is purely innate.
If we want more young people to enjoy maths, we need a cultural renaissance - one that champions creativity, builds confidence and makes maths something to be explored and enjoyed, not endured.
The International Day of Mathematics is a perfect moment to start.
Chioma Etienne is public attitudes to maths lead at Purposeful Ventures and author of the report Investigating Maths Attitudes in England
For the latest education news and analysis delivered every weekday morning, sign up for the Tes Daily newsletter
