On one level, yesterday’s publication of the new national times tables tests results provided a much-needed bright spot for many of us in primary education. 

Obviously there’s no benchmark of previous years or cohorts to compare, but the results showed that our Years 6s are, by and large, pretty secure on this aspect of becoming fluent with numbers, with most pupils scoring a full 25/25.

The results also offer insight into some other interesting variations, from the differing regional pictures, to rather predictable analysis of how girls and boys fared against each other.

Shallow insights 

But at another level, the results only really provide us with a narrow perspective on children’s mathematical ability, and only for a snapshot in time.

To understand what’s really going on, a much more sophisticated approach is needed. And academy trusts and schools are ahead of the game on this already.

Alongside reasoning and problem-solving, fluency of number lies at the heart of the maths curriculum in our 16 primary schools. Simply being able to recall a particular multiplication table does not always guarantee that a pupil is genuinely and truly fluent.

Instead, mathematicians agree that a balance must be achieved, enabling students to secure conceptual understanding in order to apply their knowledge beyond the limits of a particular table and within different mathematical problems (as well as knowing the answer to 8 x 7).

A forensic approach

At E-ACT, our schools recognise how critical maths is for everyday life, financial literacy and future employment.

We have carefully planned our maths curriculum so that our pupils develop understanding of number from the very first day of school and are supported to gain multiplication fluency as they progress.

Through our use of assessment, we are able to be much more forensic in identifying which times table each child knows, or still feels a bit wobbly with.

By doing this, our teachers can then use their valuable time to make sure that each pupil is getting the targeted support they need.

We are now taking this further, tracking the progress of individuals and analysing trends, including with groups of children, such as by gender, those eligible to receive pupil premium, and those with SEND and EAL.

Our initial look at this internal assessment data found some variance in results across the trust but with the level of insight we now have, our schools have been able to find specific gaps in pupils’ learning and start the work to close them.

Avoiding a simplistic view

The bottom line is that the data published yesterday is simplistic. It is interesting at a surface level, but it doesn’t provide the information that we need to make meaningful adjustments to a curriculum.

Instead, it risks distorting the maths curriculum by inadvertently prioritising simple recall over genuine mathematical fluency and pupils’ ability to solve problems.

And whilst times tables are, without question, an absolutely critical building part of that fluency, we must avoid a system that over-relies on national results that only skim the surface of what’s actually going on.

To do otherwise, we run the risk of our children starting their secondary education being able to recall their times tables but lacking vital knowledge after being exposed to a narrowed curriculum.

Martin Fitzwilliam is national director for primary education at E-ACT