What Happened To Numeracy?

[ToraToraTora]

https://news.sky.com/story/all-pupils-in-england-to-study-maths-until-18-under-rishi-sunaks-new-mission-12779266
Not sure what the PM means by, pupils will study Maths until 18, I assume he means the ones that are still in education. Anyway I find it shocking that:
"Around eight million adults in England have the numeracy skills of primary school children, " - so what happened? Why are we so innumerate as a nation? I'm not talking about Calculus here just basic 'rithmetic.

[Peter Pedant]

you know readers there is a committee
that decides what the kids learn in maff

out are log, slide rules, log tables
in are binary, hex program languages

matrices are mathematicus interruptus ( were out then in then out now back in)

and generally I think do a good job. sarky see above didnt follow a course, we just did many examples, for two years - and the kids who had had a two year course turned out better taught

[Peter Pedant]

better taught
more able to apply the stuff they had been taught to various situations

( like but not exact, if the question had a lorry in it and not a car, we couldnt do it)

[Peter Pedant]

1964 Maths II exam - 'advanced' - trigsy, logs and so on
O'Neill lifted his desk top ( cheating!)
for his log book
and the invigilator ( ample if anyone reads my posts) said - "no log books!"
and so we cdnt dothe exam! haw haw haw

sarky - you should have called for someone - like yeah

[jno]

tilly, no, knowing the difference between 50% and up to 50% for me is literacy not numeracy, because it's the words that make the difference. If you used plus or minus signs instead that would be numeracy, but would probably confuse me.

[Togo]

//A circle of diameter 31.8 is also a square metre//

I get the diameter of a circle with an area of a square metre to 112.837917cms.

The area of a circle with 31.8 cms is 0.0794226039 sq. metre ???

[Togo]

I think that TTT meant circumference of circle is a metre rather than the area.

[ZebuSanctuary]

Togo // Too busy learning that XX = XY //

Algebra should not be confused with biology and transgender issues ;-)

[ZebuSanctuary]

piggynose // I somehow wrote down 165/37 instead of 167/35!!! //

Were you held back at school by dyscalculia?

[ZebuSanctuary]

Bazile // Am I special ? //

Absolutely. To a googolplex minus 1

[ZebuSanctuary]

carrot // I think 12 square meters and 12m² are a bit different if
you're ordering carpet! //

In common parlance we say 12 square metres. Writing down on paper we use 12 m². Both are identical in terms of area coverage.

So, for example, taking a 4 metre roll of floor covering (linoleum, 100% wool carpet etc), the carpet salesman cuts off a length of 3 metres.

This equates to an area of 12 m² or 12 square metres of floor covering.

Hope this helps.

[ZebuSanctuary]

PP // My maff master - Sarky who was an ex tea planter //

In other words, a teacher with mental issues displaying psychopathic tendencies?

PP // numbers are numbers //

Abstract then.

[ZebuSanctuary]

TTT // eg 100m x 1cm is still a square meter. //

Tut, tut.

Tries hard. Needs more practice.

[drmorgans]

Int da problum spellin?

[Gromit]

I am having trouble working out an increase as a percentage. Perhaps one of you clever ABers can help me express the increase as a %.

In 2018 it was 299, and in 2022 it was 45,756. That is a huge increase, but what is the exact answer?

[ToraToraTora]

16:43, what are you on about?

[ZebuSanctuary]

// square meter //

>17.07

10 out of 10 on your multiplication.

Unfortunately your units are alien.

[ToraToraTora]

oh gawd we're moaning about typos. When the brain is exhausted pick on the banal! 10/10 zebu

[Gromit]

^
Which is the better response. To smirk or to snigger ?

[Togo]

What was "it"? If "it" was 10,000,000 then the % increase was low indeed if "it" was 5 then it was indeed high. Or are you trying to find a % to make another misleading claim?