The findings – digging deeper
To provide some context, all pupils attending state-funded schools in England take their Key Stage 2 national curriculum assessments (SATs) in the final term of Year 6. Pupils receive a scaled score between 80 and 120, with 100 labelled the ‘expected standard’.
The 2020 EPI research found that, without controlling for characteristics, Kumon students who had accessed the Kumon Maths Programme for at least three months achieved on average 5.27 additional points in their maths SATs compared with the national average. This translates to over a year of additional progress.
Given that, as with any specific group, there are a number of characteristic differences between Kumon students and the general population, Kumon students were then matched with children of similar attributes to reduce the potential influence of external variables. When compared with this control group, Kumon students were found to achieve on average 1.8 additional points in their maths SATs compared with their matched peers who had not accessed Kumon. This translates to 6.8 months of additional progress.
