Recently, early mathematics pedagogy in the UK has “included emphasizing the importance of individual teachers to pupil success, identifying effective generic and subject-specific practices and holding teachers to account for their pupils’ performances (Kelly et al., 2013, p. 554). Teacher accountability is a method also used in the United States and is one that researchers and specialists are usually very strongly against. Accountability leads to increased stress for teachers as well as “instructional consequences of accountability policies also include less time to teach critical thinking and analytical skills and targeting instruction to those students most likely to pass the test at the expense of very high and very low performing students” (von der Embse, 2017, p. 46). Teachers cannot help but change their teaching practices when accountability is on the line. Accountability also generally means more standardized tests, and tests can be stressful to students (von der Embse, 2017, p. 47).

England has scored very consistently in International scores for the past decade, not experiencing noticeable decrease or incline.