This report by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) provides more evidence of the benefits on young children’s learning and development of providing structured professional development and support to staff working in early years settings.
The independent evaluation of Maths Champions, delivered by the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) and undertaken by a team from the University of York and Durham University, aimed to find out if the programme which focused on professional development for staff could improve young children’s (three – four-year-olds) maths skills.
The evaluators found that children who took part in the Maths Champions programme made, on average, three months’ additional progress in both maths and language development compared to a similar group of children who didn’t take part in the programme. These findings have a high degree of security, meaning we can be confident in the results.
Further analysis included in the report also suggests that the programme shows potential in closing the attainment gap between children from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers. Children eligible for the Early Years Pupil Premium who received the programme made, on average, up to six month’s additional progress in maths.
The one-year programme, developed and delivered by NDNA, supports early years providers to improve their maths provision by nominating a senior member of existing staff as a “Maths Champion” to undertake training and support colleagues to develop their maths teaching practice. A “Deputy Maths Champion” is also selected to assist with this work.