[Adam Bright, Principal, Docklands Primary School]
Mathematics is a crucial life skill that either opens doors or becomes a barrier to students’ future life opportunities and success.
We have a big responsibility to ensure that students master what they need to master, and students need to master foundational maths knowledge and skills.
Foundational math skills cause the bridge to either hold or fail, because they are the entry point to more complex problem solving and higher order mathematical thinking.
[Brydon O’Neill-Guy, Maths Leader, Docklands Primary School]
Our maths intervention program is based on a response to intervention framework. So, the largest tier of instruction is Tier 1, and that is the classroom environment. Across every subject, every day, our teachers use explicit direct instruction, as we know that's an evidence-based strategy to support student learning.
A large part of our Tier 1 instruction is our daily review, where students are asked to recall information that's previously been learnt. And that gives teachers an understanding of whether that information has been learnt or whether it needs further review.
[Eva, Student, Docklands Primary School]
Last year, I thought subtraction was hard because I couldn't count backwards very well. But now I can count backwards and I'm very confident with it.
[Brydon O’Neill-Guy, Maths Leader, Docklands Primary School]
We use student assessment data to establish the students that will need further support. If we identify it’s a fluency issue our students will move into a tier 1.5 intervention stream, which focuses on developing their fact fluency.
They’re withdrawn 5 times a week for 15 minutes and work with one of our inclusion staff or our intervention staff. They do paired fluency practice and they get feedback on whether those facts are retrieved accurately, and then they work to improve their fluency or speed.
Despite high quality instruction at Tier 1 level, we know that around 20% of students will still need more targeted and intensive intervention. For those students that move into our Tier 2 intervention stream, where they're working to develop their conceptual and procedural knowledge in maths.
For our students with the greatest needs, we have Tier 3 intervention, which is even more highly targeted and intensive.
[Adam Bright, Principal, Docklands Primary School]
We know from the research that maths learning difficulties appear very early, and that student learning won't improve without intervention. We know that intervention is more likely to be effective when it's provided earlier in life, rather than later.
We aim to identify maths learning difficulties as early as possible, so that we can intervene as early as possible.
[Eva, Student, Docklands Primary School]
If someone found math difficult, I would tell them it's okay, mistakes make you better at everything. Plus, they make you better at life, and I believe in you.
[On-screen text]
Disability Inclusion, Education for All
Education State / Victoria State Government / Education logo
Authorised by the Victorian Government, Melbourne.
[End transcript]
Updated