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https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2018/11/13/education-in-the-media-tuesday-13-november-2018/

Education in the Media: Tuesday 13 November 2018

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Classroom

Today’s Education in the Media blog looks at the new multiplication table check framework.

Multiplication Table Check

Today, Tuesday 13 November, the department has published the framework for the new multiplication table check (MTC). This will be used to design the electronically administered tests that will be rolled out nationally in 2020. It sets out that pupils will take 25 questions based on the two to 12 times tables and will have six seconds to answer each one. This was covered in the Sun and by the TES and Schools Week.

We announced our plans to introduce this check in 2017, as part of our response to the primary assessment consultation – it will be the first of its kind in English schools and will be used similarly to the phonics checks, as a measure to see which schools are best preparing pupils with the basics, and target support where needed.

The framework was developed by the STA and has been designed to make sure the checks are easy to access and use for both teachers and pupils. Pilot checks will run in the summer of 2019 ahead of a national rollout in 2020.

School standards Minister Nick Gibb said:

Leaving primary school with a fundamental grasp of basic numeracy is as important as leaving being able to read. And just as the phonics check has helped more children learn to read, this will ensure more pupils know their times tables.

The check has been designed so that it is easy to use for both teachers and pupils as most schools already do some kind of multiplication check anyway.

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