A Response to the Proposed Australian Curriculum: Mathematics
In early 2021, ACARA released the proposed revision of the Australian Curriculum: Mathematics.
The ORIGO Education Mathematics Advisory Board responded to the proposed curriculum changes on 6 July 2021 and this can be viewed in its entirety below.
The below document provides feedback from the ORIGO Education Mathematics Advisory Board on the draft F-10 mathematics curriculum currently open for review. The Mathematics Advisory Board (MAB) includes the founders and senior mathematics content leaders from Australia and the USA and provides guidance to the company and our customers on questions of mathematics. Collectively, the group has more than 100 years’ experience in mathematics education at the primary school level.
Our feedback focuses on the mathematics curriculum for Foundation – Year 6, staying within our area of expertise. The comments for each year level include references to specific content descriptors, where appropriate, and range from raising questions to making explicit suggestions. While we did not proofread the document, we did include a list of possible errors noted at the end of the file for reference when the document is finalised.
Our strongest feedback is to tighten the language and descriptions in the opening part of the document. Across these 16 pages, a wide range of discipline-specific vocabulary and jargon are used; we struggled to find coherence and focus for curriculum and instruction within this section. While in common use in other parts of the world, many of these ideas are new to Australian teachers and will require clear definitions alongside thoughtful examples within a professional learning context to have the desired impact on student learning.
Access the response to the proposed Australian Curriculum: Mathematics document HERE