In partnership with the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), Edge Hill University is currently recruiting schools to take part in an RCT of 1stClass@Number 1. 1stClass@Number 1 is a mathematics intervention developed to support children in Year 2 who are struggling with counting, number and early calculation. In previous research, the programme has been deemed promising by the EEF. This particular research project will focus on children who are in Year 2 from September 2023 and especially those in receipt of Free School Meals .
At least 50% of successful schools in the project will come from some of the 55 Education Investment Areas.
Download the detailed School Information Sheet for the project
This EEF project is part of a wider DfE funded programme called the Accelerator Fund. The Accelerator Fund aims to increase access to evidence-informed programmes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much will taking part cost my school?
This research project is heavily subsidised by the EEF. All schools in the project will take part in the 1stClass@Number 1 intervention and receive the full Teaching Assistant 1stClass@Number 1 training and resources package. This will be provided at a reduced cost of £200 (usual cost is £1,100). The payment will include:
- full training for the TA/Link Teacher from the school
- an extensive ready made resource pack to support the lessons back in school together with the Sandwell Test to use in pupil selection and a separate baseline & endpoint test provided by the NFER
- an essential visit to the school by the ECC Trainer to support delivery and management of 1stClass@Number 1.
All schools will:
- be expected to complete pupil selection together with baseline and endpoint testing required by the NFER to assess programme impact
- also receive an incentive payment of £500 once all required data has been provided to the NFER.
Can my school take part?
To take part schools must:
- be an Infant or Primary school with children in Year 2, as at 1st September 2023, attaining at 12 months below age related expectations
- be able to access face to face training
- commit to complete all aspects of the project – all schools will participate in 1stClass@Number 1 training. For the Trial a group of 4 children will receive 1stClass@Number 1 and a separate group of 4 children will not receive the intervention at this time in each school.
- NOT be taking part in the following EEF funded programmes in the academic years 2023-24
ARK Mathematics Mastery or Mathematical Reasoning
- NOT have a TA currently working in the school who has already completed any 1stClass@Number training 1.
- NOT have delivered 1stClass@Number 1 after 1st September 2019.
When will the Teaching Assistant training take place?
The delivery of face to face 1stClass@Number 1 will take place in the Autumn/Spring terms of 2023/24 over 1 full and 4 half days.
High quality training enables a Teaching Assistant to deliver 1stClass@Number 1 to a group of up to 4 pupils in need of catch up over a period of 10 weeks.
Where will training take place?
Venues for face to face training will be confirmed as soon as possible.
What will my school’s commitment be?
Working together with the EEF and NFER, Edge Hill University will ask that the school signs a MoU so that all parties have a clarity in what is to be provided by the University, the EEF financial contribution, the NFER evaluation and the school participation requirements.
This will enable the evaluation to be successful, benefitting the school and contributing to understanding of how well the intervention works. Your school’s taking part in this type of research will contribute to the EEF’s evidence base which supports schools to make informed choices when deciding how best to support struggling pupils and those entitled to Pupil Premium.
All schools will be committing to:
- Ensuring full participation in the TA & school link teacher training.
- Completing a pupil selection process so that 8 pupils are chosen – pupil randomisation will allocate 4 pupils to receive the intervention and 4 to be in the control group.
- Delivering the intervention in full to the 4 selected pupils.
- Complying with all NFER data collection requirements – some schools may be invited to take part in interviews, surveys or observations.
How can I register my school’s interest in taking part in this project?
Expressions of interest are currently being collected, please complete the short form by clicking the button below:
Please contact the ECC team on 01695 657 133 if you have any questions we can help with.