How Did We Get Here? Timelines Showing Changes to Maths Education in England and the United States

Timelines enhance comprehension and offer a pictorial aid in organising information in a chronological sequence so that growth, change, recurring events, cause and effect, and key events of historical, social, and scientific significance can be better understood. The timelines presented in this document show the journey that mathematics education has gone through over time in both England and the United States of America (US). The starting date for the timelines differs in the two countries, because they both start with key events for education in that country. The England timeline starts from 1861, with the investigation of how schooling should be provided to all children in England. The US timeline starts approximately a century earlier, in 1788, with the publication of a set of teaching protocols for arithmetic. The two timelines detail major changes in mathematics education since those respective dates, including the introduction of, and changes to, curricula/standards and changes to major qualifications. The US timeline also shows major themes throughout the history, such as the "keeping maths in the hands of teachers" theme between 1900-1930.