LONDON — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will on Wednesday announce plans to force school pupils in England to study math up to the age of 18, according to a Downing Street briefing. The initiative attempts to tackle innumeracy and better equip young people for the workplace.
In his first speech of 2023, Sunak is expected to outline plans for math to be offered through alternative qualification routes. Comparatively, traditional A-Levels subject-based qualifications allow high school students in England to elect academic subjects to study between the ages of 16 and 18.
The prime minister may also use the speech to address the litany of issues facing the country, as he looks to shore up his government's position after a chaotic 2022 for the ruling Conservative Party and the U.K. economy.
The U.K. is contending with a winter of mass strike action from public sector workers, an imminent prolonged recession, unprecedented pressure on the country's National Health Service and a cost of living crisis that is squeezing households.
Sunak's education proposals would only affect pupils in England. Education is a devolved issue, with Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish authorities managing their own systems.
School-based education in England is only compulsory up to the age of 16, after which children can choose to pursue further academic qualifications such as A-Levels or alternative qualifications, or vocational training.
The prime minister is expected to say in his Wednesday speech that the issue of mandatory math is "personal" for him.
"Every opportunity I've had in life began with the education I was so fortunate to receive. And it's the single most important reason why I came into politics: to give every child the highest possible standard of education," he will say.
Sunak attended prestigious fee-paying institutions — the Stroud School and Winchester College — before studying at Oxford University.
He is expected to acknowledge that the planned overhaul will be challenging and time consuming, with work beginning during the current parliamentary term and finishing in the next.
This would leave the future of the policy uncertain, if Sunak's Conservative Party loses the next general election slated for 2024. The main opposition Labour Party currently holds substantial leads in the polls.
The government briefing on Wednesday morning highlighted that around 8 million adults in England have the numeracy skills of elementary school children, while 60% of disadvantaged pupils do not have basic math skills at the age of 16.
"One of the biggest changes in mindset we need in education today is to reimagine our approach to numeracy," Sunak is expected to say.
"Right now, just half of all 16–19-year-olds study any maths at all. Yet in a world where data is everywhere and statistics underpin every job, our children's jobs will require more analytical skills than ever before."
Labour's Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson criticized the plans as an "empty pledge," pointing to the government's track record on teacher recruitment.
"He cannot deliver this reheated, empty pledge without more maths teachers, yet the government has missed their target for new maths teachers year after year, with existing teachers leaving in their droves," she said, according to multiple news outlets.
"Now, maths attainment gaps are widening yet Rishi Sunak as chancellor said the country had 'maxed out' on Covid recovery support for our children."
Labour has pledged to end tax breaks for private schools and use the revenue to invest in training 6,500 more teachers across the country.