Reception teachers who are grappling with the new raised expectations for mathematics may wish to know that they are unlikely to be successful. The new Early Learning Goal for Number, to be achieved at the end of the Reception year, includes being able to add and subtract and ‘count on or back to find the answer’ as well as ‘to solve problems including doubling’. These skills were previously expected only at the top level of the Foundation Stage Profile, which was achieved by just 7 per cent of reception children, according to the DfE’s own statistics (‘Calculating’, scale point 9; Early Years Foundation Stage Profile Results In England, 2011/12: Statistical First Release).
The new Goal also includes knowing numbers up to 20, which was achieved by only 17 per cent (the top of the scale for ‘Numbers as Labels and for Counting’). This means that number skills are now expected of all five-year-olds, which were achieved by less than 20 per cent last year.
Some might argue that the new ELG is not identical to the top scale points of the 2008 Foundation Stage Profile. However, compare the new Goal for Numbers with the previous top scale points:
Children count reliably with numbers from one to 20, place them in order and say which number is one more or one less than a given number. Using quantities and objects, they add and subtract two single-digit numbers and count on or back to find the answer. They solve problems, including doubling, halving and sharing. (Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, DfE 2012)
The child recognises, counts, orders, writes and uses numbers up to 20. The child uses a range of strategies for addition and subtraction such as counting on, counting back and counting up as appropriate. He or she displays mental recall of some addition and subtraction facts, including some addition doubles and pairs of numbers that total 10 (Foundation Stage Profile, QCA 2008)
Apart from not writing numbers to 20, the new Goal does not seem much different to these top scale points. So how will the majority now achieve what only a minority could do last year? There certainly does not seem to be any more support for reception teachers. The new non-statutory guidance Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage (DfE 2012) does not even mention numbers to 20. We hope more support will be provided. Without this, it seems likely that most reception teachers and children will be declared as failing in mathematics this time next year – leaving the question, why would the Government want this to happen?
In the first week of December, the new Foundation Stage Profile 2013 and Exemplification Materials were published by DfE. We are left wondering where the support is for 'placing 0-20 in order', 'halving' 'doubling' and 'sharing' - the challenging new elements of the new EYFS Number ELG? There’s plenty of counting backwards (but only from ten); neither is there any evidence that the additions have been done by ‘counting on’; nor that the subtractions have been done by ‘counting back’. Consequently, no child in this exemplification document appears to have reached the 'expected' standard for the ‘Numbers’ ELG. Apparently, such evidence was not 'forthcoming' from the 17 LAs in the Standards and Teaching Agency' project to collate the exemplification materials.
We feel that EY practitioners should be made aware that as it stands, this goal is both unachievable and damaging as an 'expected' goal. There is worldwide research pointing to the fact that this goal is wrong. It is interesting to ponder why the Government has cherry-picked research that is not based on early years and used this to ignore responses to the 'consultation'.
