More than 8000 primary schools in England will be introduced to Asian teaching methods for Maths in a £41 million (US$54.5 million) drive to boost standards across the country.

LONDON: Thousands of primary schools in England will be introduced to Asian teaching methods for mathematics in a £41 million (US$54.5 million) drive to boost standards across the country.

British media reported that the method which is being used in Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong has already been adopted in some schools. The new funds are expected to facilitate wider usage.

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The Department for Education said the method requires children to be taught as a whole class and is supported by high quality textbooks, according to the BBC.

It added that pupils are encouraged to use objects and pictures to demonstrate numbers and symbols and visualise the abstract concepts and ideas.

According to the Guardian, Schools Minister Nick Gibb visited Shanghai in March to see the methods being applied.



It quoted him saying, "I am confident that the steps we are taking now will ensure young people are properly prepared for further study and the 21st-century workplace, and that the too often heard phrase ‘can’t do maths’ is consigned to the past.”

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In June last year, a study found that by learning mathematics under the same approach used in Singapore, pupils in England fared better in the subject.

Assessing the performance of more than 10,000 pupils in England for a year, researchers found that the students had made progress equivalent to that of after undergoing an additional month of classes.