“We would wish ‘numerate’ to imply the possession of two attributes. The first of these is an ‘at-homeness’ with numbers and an ability to make use of mathematical skills which enable an individual to cope with the practical mathematical demands of his everyday life. The second is ability to have some appreciation and understanding of information which is presented in mathematical terms, for instance in graphs, charts or tables or by reference to percentage increase or decrease.” (Cockcroft Committee, “Mathematics Counts: A Report into the Teaching of Mathematics in Schools”, 1982)
“To function in today's society, mathematical literacy - what the British call ‘numeracy' - is as essential as verbal literacy […] Numeracy requires more than just familiarity with numbers. To cope confidently with the demands of today's society, one must be able to grasp the implications of many mathematical concepts - for example, change, logic, and graphs - that permeate daily news and routine decisions - mathematical, scientific, and cultural - provide a common fabric of communication indispensable for modern civilized society. Mathematical literacy is especially crucial because mathematics is the language of science and technology.” (National Research Council, “Everybody counts: A report to the nation on the future of mathematics education”, 1989)
“Illiteracy and innumeracy are social ills created in part by increased demand for words and numbers. As printing brought words to the masses and made literacy a prerequisite for productive life, so now computing has made numeracy an essential feature of today's society. But it is innumeracy, not numeracy, that dominates the headlines: ignorance of basic quantitative tools is endemic […] and is approaching epidemic levels […].” (Lynn A Steen, “Numeracy”, Daedalus Vol. 119 No. 2, 1990)
“[…] data analysis in the context of basic mathematical concepts and skills. The ability to use and interpret simple graphical and numerical descriptions of data is the foundation of numeracy […] Meaningful data aid in replacing an emphasis on calculation by the exercise of judgement and a stress on interpreting and communicating results.” (David S Moore, “Statistics for All: Why, What and How?”, 1990)
“To be numerate is more than being able to manipulate numbers, or even being able to ‘succeed’ in school or university mathematics. Numeracy is a critical awareness which builds bridges between mathematics and the real world, with all its diversity. […] in this sense […] there is no particular ‘level’ of Mathematics associated with it: it is as important for an engineer to be numerate as it is for a primary school child, a parent, a car driver or gardener. The different contexts will require different Mathematics to be activated and engaged in […] ”(Betty Johnston, “Critical Numeracy”, 1994)
“We believe that numeracy is about making meaning in mathematics and being critical about maths. This view of numeracy is very different from numeracy just being about numbers, and it is a big step from numeracy or everyday maths that meant doing some functional maths. It is about using mathematics in all its guises - space and shape, measurement, data and statistics, algebra, and of course, number - to make sense of the real world, and using maths critically and being critical of maths itself. It acknowledges that numeracy is a social activity. That is why we can say that numeracy is not less than maths but more. It is why we don’t need to call it critical numeracy being numerate is being critical.” (Dave Tout & Beth Marr, “Changing practice: Adult numeracy professional development”, 1997)
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