Maths or Numeracy - what’s the difference?

You may have noticed in our newsletters, presentations and when talking to teaching staff that we use these two terms when talking about learning maths. Although they have related meanings, they do refer to two different concepts; this difference is important and relates to the four proficiencies I wrote about in Term 1.

Maths refers to a domain of knowledge - a collection of concepts and understandings. The Victorian Curriculum (primary years) breaks down maths into the areas of Number, Algebra, Space, Measurement and Probability & Statistics. 

Numeracy refers to the ability to apply this knowledge and mathematical thinking to a variety of situations and contexts, including real life situations and social contexts. 

‘…students become numerate as they develop the knowledge and skills to use mathematics confidently across other learning areas at school and in their lives more broadly. Numeracy encompasses the knowledge, skills, behaviours and dispositions that students need to use mathematics in a wide range of situations. It involves students recognising and understanding the role of mathematics in the world and having the dispositions and capacities to use mathematical knowledge and skills purposefully.’ (ACARA 2017)

At our Annual Public Meeting last week, a question was asked about what the school thought was behind the significant improvement in our maths data - planning for both maths and numeracy has certainly been a major factor. We ensure our students have scaffolded opportunities to apply multiple skills and ways of thinking to solve increasingly complex problems - it is the difference between knowing how to add and subtract and knowing about decimal numbers compared to knowing how much your shopping will equate to and how much change you will get after your purchase. An example in literacy would be understanding how to decode (sound out) words compared to comprehending what a sentence or text is trying to convey.

If you are looking to support your child with their maths and numeracy learning, we would encourage you to think about the numeracy (real life application) and then see the maths (skills and concepts) within each situation. Cooking, traveling and shopping all provide many rich and engaging experiences that are filled with mathematical thinking and calculations you and your child can enjoy together. If you would like more information on mathematical experiences to engage your child at home, you can click here.