New maths curriculum, pushing numeracy and financial literacy, for South Australian public schools from 2024

Eleven South Australian high schools were introducing an internationally designed mathematics curriculum for Year 10 students in partnership with the Centre for Curriculum Redesign at Harvard University in the United States of America and the OECD. (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development).

A new mathematics curriculum for South Australian public high schools was announced to begin in Term 1, 2024.

Touted as world-leading, the South Australia-specific mathematics improvement strategy was developed by teachers in consultation with maths experts. It aimed to give students the knowledge and skills needed for projects such as AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) submarines project for Port Adelaide.

A financial literacy programme also would be introduced at the start of the 2024 school year. This greater focus on financial literacy education across all year levels was designed to give students the life skills to understand budgeting, make sound financial decisions, identify scams and understand consumer rights. This followed on from the state government’s commitment to ban banks in public schools, in effect at the start of 2023.

South Australian government education department chief executive professor Martin Westwell said improving the numeracy and mathematics skills of students was a priority for the state government.

The department also was delivering other initiatives to improve mathematics education in schools, including:

         • The maths assessment interview, to be piloted in 50 schools in 2024, with one-on-one interviews for students to show their mathematical understanding
           and preferred strategies for solving complex tasks.
         • Eleven high schools, including Roma Mitchell Secondary College, introducing an internationally designed mathematics curriculum for Year 10 students in
            partnership with the Centre for Curriculum Redesign at Harvard University in the United States of America  and the OECD (Organisation for Economic
            Co-operation and Development). Mathematics teachers involved were from South Australia, Massachusetts, British Columbia, and Victoria.
         •  An annual numeracy summit, with the first in 2023, for more than 1,000 school leaders and mathematics coordinators brought together to hear from
            numeracy and maths experts from around the world and improve teaching in schools.