Making maths better

Loughborough University is set to open a new research centre which will aim to improve the teaching of maths in schools and colleges. The new Centre for Mathematical Cognition, based at the Mathematics Education Centre, will include 11 new academic posts and will be co-directed by Psychologist Dr Camilla Gilmore and Mathematician, Professor Matthew Inglis.

Academics at the centre will study learning, the design of pedagogical materials based on those studies, and large-scale evaluations of educational interventions. It will also form a network of schools and colleges with which to discuss classroom priorities and share evidence-based practice.

Poor maths skills are estimated to cost the UK economy £33 billion per year and, of course, impact on potential career opportunities. The government has invested more than £6 million in the centre as part of its Expanding Excellence in England Fund, part of a broader push to raise research and development funding to 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2027.

Loughborough University will begin a recruitment campaign in the next few months, but if you are an academic with expertise in mathematical cognition, educational design and/or evaluation you are invited to informally discuss opportunities with Gilmore or Inglis (find them on the Loughborough University website).