By Paul Jenkins, Head of Secondary Curriculum Services
Every year on results day there are pictures of successful students leaping in the air with their exam results. But as teachers, governors and leaders, we are well aware that behind this scene stand disappointed children who have failed to get their basic grade in maths and face an endless cycle of retakes. This is a problem that has been embedded from Year 7 and earlier. It’s a problem that the HFL maths team have set their minds to address.
The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), alongside HFL Education, is embarking on an exciting new trial to evaluate the impact of our Making Fluent and Flexible Calculators programme. This initiative targets lower-attaining Year 7 students in secondary schools, offering them a critical early intervention designed to build their confidence and proficiency in maths.
HFL have already run the programme at KS2 for a number of years and more recently launched the programme at KS3. However, this recognition of the potential of the scheme from the EEF provides a fantastic opportunity for HFL to make a tangible difference to the outcomes of some of the most vulnerable learners on a national level.
For many students the transition from primary to secondary school marks a critical turning point in their education. For lower-attaining students in maths, though, this can be a particularly challenging time. Without the right support, these students often fall further behind, creating a gap that becomes increasingly difficult to close as they progress through secondary education. Trustees and governors can often identify these widening gaps through internal data, but they can rarely offer practical suggestions about how to effectively tackle those gaps.
Parents often worry about their low-confidence children being assigned to “bottom sets” and can inadvertently embed that sense of powerlessness and failure by focusing on the setting decision rather than on the teaching and on the successes the children are achieving. The Making Fluent and Flexible Calculators programme seeks to address this issue head-on, targeting students in Year 7 with high-impact interventions that build skill and confidence.
The "phonics" of maths
Following the success of phonics in transforming the reading skills of young people, the focus has been thrown onto the equivalent for maths. Fluency is widely recognised as the counterpart to phonics maths and a critical building block for success.
Rather than students thinking there is just one route to a calculation – which will often be long-winded or even involve finger counting – students who have undergone the programme have developed a range of strategies. They can choose the most appropriate and quickest rather than just the most familiar strategy. This in turn builds confidence in manipulating numbers and develops the students into more agile mathematicians.
Designed for flexibility
One of the programme’s standout features is its flexibility. Recognising the challenges that schools face regarding time, resources, and staffing, the intervention has been designed to fit seamlessly into existing timetables and run alongside the curriculum. The materials are straightforward and carefully structured, making them accessible even to non-specialist teachers. This means that schools don’t need to rely solely on maths specialists to deliver the programme. Instead, any teacher can lead the intervention, using the step-by-step materials to guide students effectively.
The intervention can be delivered to whole classes in ten-minute segments over several weeks, minimising disruption to the maths curriculum whilst maximising impact. The practicality of implementation makes the programme especially appealing, even to the most hard-pressed of departments.
Embedding strong calculation skills in Year 7 is about more than addressing only immediate gaps. It’s about setting students up for long-term success. By equipping lower-attaining students with the tools they need early on, the programme helps to ensure that they can access more challenging material as they progress through Key Stages 3 and 4. This proactive approach – sometimes described as “swimming upstream” – seeks to prevent the need for last-minute interventions at GCSE level, which can be both stressful for students and resource-intensive for schools. Instead, the Making Fluent and Flexible Calculators programme aims to build a strong foundation from the start, giving students the confidence and skills they need to thrive in maths.
Join the trial
The EEF and HFL Education are currently recruiting schools to take part in this programme’s trial. This is an opportunity for state-funded secondary schools with a class of lower-attaining Year 7 students to access an evidence-based intervention that could make a real difference to students’ outcomes.
Participation in the trial not only allows your school to benefit from this innovative programme; it also contributes to vital research that will shape future approaches to supporting lower-attaining students in maths.
If you’re interested in being part of this transformative project, don’t miss the chance to get involved.
If you have any questions, email fluentandflexible.eef@hfleducation.org
Trustees, governors and headteachers are rightly concerned about how they can address the needs of a number of vulnerable learners. That might be in supporting students with SEN, delivering results for learners eligible for the pupil premium, or accelerating the progress of those who faced early adversity but have the potential to fly at secondary. It’s about making sure that every student has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of their starting point.
The Making Fluent and Flexible Calculators programme is about more than just improving maths skills. It’s about giving students the confidence to believe in their own abilities, unlocking their potential, and setting them on a path to success.
If you have any questions, email fluentandflexible.eef@hfleducation.org
