Classification of mathematics ability and use of online tools

Enrolment in secondary school science and mathematics subjects has been declining for some time. This decrease is particularly evident in the final years of secondary education and occurs in parallel with the delivery of advanced mathematics. This decreasing trend in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) enrolment at the secondary level are by no means restricted to Australia, with reports from the UK and Europe, the Middle East and Asia all echoing the same decline. Alongside this decline in mathematics enrolment comes an increased interest in, and reliance upon, online resources to bolster learning. The educational challenge arising from such an environment, while notable in the high school context, has profound follow-on effects within the higher education sector.
The data in this submission is twofold and addresses both the decay in learning, and the increase in tool reliance. For the former we developed a tool to classify mathematics capacity in order to provide t...