Gleaning the best of two worlds

Learning pace

Naturally, due to cultural differences, not all elements of the Shanghai method can be easily adopted into the UK system. The results of a study by Sheffield Hallam University which were released in January stated that while Key Stage 1 math pupils had benefitted from the Shanghai method, the same could not be said for Key Stage 2 children.

However, one aspect of the Shanghai method that has already been implemented in the UK curriculum is the pace of learning, says Pegrum, who is also a math mastery specialist with the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics in the UK.

While the Shanghai method is centered on slower lessons that are focused on helping students achieve small, incremental steps in learning, British educators have been used to a faster pace.

"Keeping all the children together and having them do the same learning, ensuring the learning has small steps, providing children with a framework and vocabulary for their reasoning in the form of sentence stems, are some of Shanghai teaching aspects that are applicable in a UK classroom," he says.

Natalie Pullen, a British math teacher at the Northern Parade schools in Portsmouth, also lauded the Shanghai method, saying that Chinese teachers are trained to deliver a planned teaching sequence which involves clever practice that moves learning forward at a rapid pace.

"In contrast, in a typical English school, there might be a shorter teaching sequence followed by some independent practice, which feels less connected and interactive, even though this is not the case in all schools."

According to Martyn Kelly, deputy head teacher at the Front Street Primary School in Whickham, Gateshead, British teachers have historically been expected to accelerate children onto new content and keep challenging them through gaps in their learning. But this approach has changed since the exchange programs began.

"Teachers are now covering concepts with more depth and layers to learning. This is an approach that we are keen to follow and develop further at Front Street Primary," he says, before noting that a slower approach has already proved to be beneficial for slow learners.

"Children feel more confident when the lessons are slower. To create the most impact, we need a UK-specific approach that features a balance between the Shanghai style and our own methods of teaching."