'Rishi Sunak's failed his own maths test – absolutely none of it adds up'
A man who struggled to make a contactless payment says adults who can’t do basic maths ought to be embarrassed. Well, Rishi Sunak, I can’t, and I’m not. So there.
I don’t have dyscalculia, or any other diagnosed issue with numbers, I’ve just not got that sort of brain. Maths lessons were torturous, boring and massively knocked my confidence – the only way they could have been worse is if they’d gone on even longer, which is what Rishi is proposing. Compulsory maths for everyone until they’re 18.
Of course everyone needs to know the fundamental maths of life, so you aren’t ripped off getting change in a shop, or when signing up for a mortgage But how ‘basic’ is the maths going to be by the time you’ve already been learning it for 16 years and still have two to go. (I’m almost certain.)
Also, what about the many fulfilling careers you can have with no maths involved, (ahem) do they just not… count?
All that aside, the language Sunak used is interesting, isn’t it. He thinks people who aren’t good at maths should be embarrassed.
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Some might suggest it’s more embarrassing to be the prime minister of a country where people can’t afford food or heating, and be banging on about maths instead of that.
Or to introduce a plan where everyone studies maths until they’re 18, without first checking there are enough maths teachers to implement it. Which there aren’t. Still, it will probably be a total walk in the park to attract new people into the profession, seeing as teachers are treated and paid so very well by his government.
And something else that could be judged more embarrassing than not being au fait with algebra is leaving it until the last minute to sign up experts to endorse your new maths scheme, and then forgetting to ask them whether they actually think it’s a good idea.
Leading film data analyst Stephen Follows was approached last Friday, for this drive announced two days later, the plan being that he would wax lyrical about it in a social media campaign. He was the only expert successfully recruited, depending on your definition of successfully. Because, just one tiny thing – “Nobody thought to ask me whether I support this policy,” he reveals. Oh, OK, one more tiny thing – he didn’t.
“I’m delighted to have this platform to share my views because I think their one-size-fits-all policy is misguided, tone deaf to the actual needs of students and may even be counterproductive,” Stephen explains.
The social media campaign was quietly scrapped.
So who should be more embarrassed – those who assume we’re talking about Amazon viewing figures when they hear the term prime numbers, or Rishi Sunak? A maths fascist whose plans don’t add up. A billionaire who just personally paid tens of thousands to upgrade his local electricity network so it can cope with the demands of heating his new 40 foot swimming pool, while 350 public pools have closed or cut their hours as a result of energy costs.
Someone who pledged his government would have “integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level”, currently being investigated by The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, over whether he broke the MPs’ code of conduct by failing to mention his wife’s stake in a childcare agency which looks likely to benefit from the last budget.
If only the answers to mathematical problems were this blindingly obvious, eh?
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