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Chinese maths teachers to help UK schools

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The British government wants Chinese teachers to try to improve the standard of maths in British schools. Students in Shanghai have the highest international test results according to a global testing agency. There is a huge difference in numeracy levels between the UK and China. A British newspaper reports: "The children of cleaners in Shanghai outperform those of UK doctors and lawyers in global maths tests." To try and change this, the UK will hire 60 of Shanghai's best maths teachers. It is part of a new initiative aimed at improving the mathematics ability of one million British students.

The UK said it was shocked it was so far behind many countries in maths. It warned that poor numeracy costs the economy $30 billion a year. Britain's education minister, who recently returned from a fact-finding mission in China, said: "We have some brilliant maths teachers in this country but what I saw in Shanghai and other Chinese cities has only strengthened my belief that we can learn from them." She added: "They have a can-do attitude to maths and I want us to match that." She said maths qualifications could mean higher salaries and protect against unemployment.