The Mathspeak project

Mathspeak is a free foreign language learning resource for secondary schools that is available in six European languages. The ten courses enable students to perform mathematics in a foreign language at the same level they do in their native language.

Mathspeak enables students to:

verbally express mathematical concepts appropriate to their age groups,
make sense of mathematics when it is both spoken and written,
put number problems into words, and
handle mathematical terminology with confidence.

Get Started

How to download the course materials

Any school in the European Union and the United Kingdom can download and use the free educational materials.

To register and access the Mathspeak training course platform, click the button below:

Get Started

Supported languages

Mathspeak is available in:

English

български/Bulgarian
Mathspeak е безплатен ресурс за обучение по чужди езици за средните училища, който се предлага на шест европейски езика.
Математика

Ελληνικά/Greek
Το Mathspeak είναι ένας δωρεάν πόρος εκμάθησης ξένων γλωσσών για σχολεία δευτεροβάθμιας εκπαίδευσης που διατίθεται σε έξι ευρωπαϊκές γλώσσες.
Μαθηματικά

Italiano/Italian
Mathspeak è una risorsa gratuita per l’apprendimento delle lingue straniere per le scuole secondarie disponibile in sei lingue europee.
Matematica

Polskie/Polish
Mathspeak to bezpłatny zasób do nauki języków obcych dla szkół średnich, dostępny w sześciu językach europejskich.
Matematyka

Română/Romanian
Mathspeak este o resursă gratuită de învățare a limbilor străine pentru școlile secundare, disponibilă în șase limbi europene.
Matematică

Templates are available if you wanted to translate the materials into another language.

Course modules

Mathspeak contains courses on:

Numbers
Arithmetic
Algebra
Probability & Statistics
Graphs
Geometry
Proofs
Physics
Chemistry
Finance

Why this project is needed

Because mathematics is usually communicated in symbols, you might think it doesn’t require a lot of language skills.

When students study mathematics in a foreign language, the language itself adds layers of difficulty to something that is already abstract and opaque. Research shows that students don’t perform at mathematics as well as they could.

You may be able to write sums in symbols, but you need words and grammar to speak them and understand them when they are spoken.

Benefits

The learning materials help tackle academic underachievement, alienation and disaffection, which can lead to students leaving school at an early age.

For students

The benefits for students are:

They improve both their foreign language skills and their performance in mathematics.
As a result, their motivation will increase, and this will bring them more academic success.
Any success will also have a positive influence on non-participating individuals in the target groups.
The students’ improved linguistic and mathematical skills will help them when they start work or move onto tertiary level education.

For schools and teachers

Schools and teachers get:

Free teaching materials they can use in their lessons.
An awareness of the linguistic issues that are frequently at the heart of resistance to the mathematics.

Student target age groups

Our target groups are students at intermediate and pre-intermediate levels of competence in a foreign language. They are in Years 8-12 at high school, or in further education.

They are either:

Immigrants
International students in foreign language speaking institutions
Students in a country or institution where the language of maths instruction is not the mother tongue, or
Students in their home countries learning a foreign language. For example, the materials could be used in English (as a second) language lessons.

About the Mathspeak partners

The project is a partnership between European educational practitioners and the creators of educational materials. Between 100 -150 teachers and students took part in developing and testing the Mathspeak course materials.

Colegiul tehnic “loan C. Ştefănescu” (Romania)

Colegiul tehnic “loan C. Ştefănescu” is a technical college in Iasi, Romania. Students are trained in vocational subjects such as: fashion design; catering; hotel management; hairdressing; textiles; and polygraphs.

These results led to the college winning the Romanian Ministry of Education’s “European School” competition in 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2018. The competition assesses the quality and consistency of school policy, and the impact of European project activities on the organizational culture and ethos of a school. This certification signalled the further development of the institution. It contributed to the development of a broader and more efficient strategy for promoting European projects and educating students in the spirit of European citizenship.

Istituto Statale d’Istruzione Superiore “E. Mattei” (Italy)

Istituto Statale d’Istruzione Superiore “E. Mattei” is an Institute of Higher Education that comprises a number of schools: the Scientific High School, the High School of Human Sciences, the Technical Economic Institute, the Technological Technical Institute, and the Professional Institute for Industry and Crafts. It is located in the Val d’Arda in Italy. The students move on from the Institute to university or the world of work.

PGO “Nedka Ivan Lazarova” (Bulgaria)

The Nedka Ivan Lazarova “Vocational school of clothes design and tailoring” is recognized as one of the best vocational schools in the country. It is located in Rousse, Bulgaria. The following specialities are taught at the school: fashion design, clothing technology, sewing, hairdressing and cosmetics. The school has a longstanding tradition of educating students with special and specific educational needs and adults.

VIVA FEMINA (Poland)

The Viva Femina Foundation aims to act for the benefit of women, disabled and young people. Based in Rzeszów, Poland, Viva Femina implements good practices in gender issues and promotes equal opportunities for women and men in all areas of life. Its activities support women and other groups in the Polish labour market.

The Aristotle School of Serres / Αριστοτέλειο Εκπαιδευτήριο Σερρών (Greece)

The Aristotle School is an educational institute that provides educational services in Serres, Greece. It is a modern and multifunctional educational organisation that teaches at the High School level. The institute offers high scientific and pedagogical training, good facilities, excellent organisation, and an expanded, modern and high quality curriculum.

Cherryleaf Ltd (UK)