Research Review
Adult numeracy: review of research and related literature
Diana Coben, University of Nottingham with contributions by: Dhamma Colwell; Sheila Macrae; Jo Boaler, Margaret Brown and Valerie Rhodes; King’s College, London November 2003 This report is funded by the Department for Education and Skills as part of Skills for Life: the national strategy for improving adult literacy and numeracy skills. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department.
Published by the National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy
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Design: chapmandesign Photography: Phillip Meech Print: Bradell Adult numeracy: review of research and related literature Diana Coben, University of Nottingham with contributions by: Dhamma Colwell; Sheila Macrae; Jo Boaler, Margaret Brown and Valerie Rhodes; King’s College, London
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 5
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7
INTRODUCTION 8
The scope of the review 8 Adult numeracy - conceptual issues 9 (Adult) mathematics education as a research domain 21 Epistemologies of mathematics and mathematics education 26 Absolutist and fallibilist epistemologies of mathematics 26 Constructivist and sociocultural epistemologies of mathematics education 26 Feminist epistemologies 27 Ethnomathematics 28 Reviews of research 30 Survey evidence of adults’ numeracy skills 32 The International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) 34 The Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey (ALL) 35 Concluding remarks on surveys 36
NUMERACY IN CONTEXT 38
Context and transfer 38 Investigating the use of mathematics in everyday life by Dhamma Colwell 40 The implications for mathematics and numeracy education 44 Mathematics and employment 47 Financial literacy 50 Concluding remarks on context and transfer 53
LEARNING AND TEACHING ADULT NUMERACY 54
Issues in learning and teaching adult numeracy 54 Policy and provision of adult numeracy in England: Skills for Life and Key Skills 55 Curriculum development and approaches to teaching and learning 58 Elements of mathematics 64 Assessment 66 Literacy, language and ICT in relation to numeracy 68 Multiple intelligences 72 Critical pedagogies 72 Adult numeracy learners 73 Adults with learning difficulties and disabilities 74 Gender 74 Age 76 Teacher education for adult numeracy 77 Effective Teachers of Numeracy project by Sheila Macrae 83 Data sources 83 Some findings from the project 84 The National Numeracy Strategy in Primary schools by Sheila Macrae 85 The three-part lesson 86 Oral/mental starter 86 Main teaching session 87 Plenary phase 88 Evaluation of the National Numeracy Strategy 88 Leverhulme Numeracy Research Programme by Sheila Macrae 90 Conclusion 90
FACTORS AFFECTING LEARNING 92
Affective factors - attitudes, beliefs and feelings 92 Attitudes to mathematics by Jo Boaler, Margaret Brown and Valerie Rhodes 93 A. Factors influencing pupils’ attitudes to mathematics 93 Introduction 93 1. Gender 94 2. Teaching, learning and the curriculum 95 3. Confidence 96 B. Choice of mathematics post-16 97 C. Changes in attitude effected by special initiatives 98 D. Influence of societal attitudes to mathematics 99 E. Relationship between participation in science and mathematics and improved national economic performance 100 Mathematics anxiety by Sheila Macrae 100 Mathematics anxiety in the primary school 101 Mathematics anxiety in the secondary school 102 Mathematics anxiety in adults 103 Dyscalculia and the functioning of the brain in mathematical activity by Dhamma Colwell 104 The functioning of the brain in mathematical activity 104 Dyscalculia 106 Dyscalculia: Incidence 106 Dyscalculia: Assessment 106 Dyscalculia: Symptoms 107 Implications for adult numeracy teaching and learning 108
METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES 110
Methodological issues in research on adult numeracy 110 Mixed methods 111 Experimental/intervention studies including randomised controlled trials 112 Ethnographic approaches 112 Practitioner research 113
WHAT DO WE KNOW AND WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ADULT NUMERACY - AND WHAT SHOULD WE DO ABOUT IT? 115
Conceptualising numeracy 115 Surveying numeracy 115 Designing and implementing policies for adult numeracy 115 Teaching and learning adult numeracy 115 Seeing the wood for the trees: numeracy in situ 116 Researching adult numeracy 117 Developing teachers of adult numeracy 117 Learning adult numeracy 118 Building capacity in adult numeracy 118
REFERENCES 119 Adult numeracy: review of research and related literature 5
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to many people who have made suggestions, provided references and answered queries, including Professor Margaret Brown, Professor John Bynner, Dr Jeff Evans, Tessa Griffiths, Dr Jeremy Hodgen, Dr Betty Johnston, Dr Michael Rice, Dr Katherine Safford- Ramus, Dr Jon Swain, Dr Alison Tomlin, Dr Karin Tusting, Dr Tine Wedege, Professor Alison Wolf; also participants at the following events and conferences: