How do you think and feel about using numbers?

Love them. I was fortune enough to have a primary school teacher who saw that and encouraged me. 

Brain training - numbers by rote - multiplication tables - still comes in handy (I get ‘sticky’ on the 7’s). 

Chatting to  co-worker years ago, he was asked ‘what’s the VAT on £600’. I told them the answer before he could switch his (admittedly ancient) adding machine on. Asked how .. I replied 10%’plus half plus half  which was how I’d been shown .. they’re just numbers .. 

Best to start with -

Learning to speak ENGLISH first 

Then move onto MATHS 

Maths are important. You do not need rocket scientist ability but life overall is easier if a good comfort level with numbers is obtained. One of the most important things to improve maths going forward is to reject the claim that maths (and other subjects) need to be "de-colonised". Any university that subjects students to this way of thinking has direct blame for declining skills as the intellectual leadership from universities filters down to schools and teaching the youth.

Appreciating that there are many who do struggle with maths, what is the purpose of making the subject of maths (and others) divisive? The result is only lower levels of understanding and chances in life.

What is required is to make using numbers fun. I like Mathematics and find a use for them everyday. I realise that we are in the digital age and most things can be achieved on a Mob. However in order to keep ones mind active and alive, Maths should be a manual  exercise.

I feel diffident about admitting that I have had a lifetime of moderate proficiency in mathematics.  It's as well because I am an engineer!  

It seems that we are divided into two distinct ways of thinking.  C.P. Snow's Two Cultures. Our changing society will use numbers more and more.  I think we will understand one another better if mathematics were regarded simply as a way of thinking to which everyone has a right.

Keeping everything in one's head is the way to a headache.  I use OpalCalc: A New Generation of Calculator (skytopia.com) for even the simplest of arithmetic.  If there is no need to worry about the numbers, it becomes easier to think about the ideas.

And yes, it's easy for me to say.  I deeply regret that learning maths by rote has discouraged so many.  I would love to take them through the mathematical barrier.  Educators talk about S.T.E.M. subjects but the "M" should come first as we need Mathematics as a foundation for Science, Technology (Applied Science), and Engineering (a Useful Art),

As a professional economist and someone who worked in financial markets, mathematical skills were important.  Arithmetic, algebra and statistics rather more than geometry, trigonometry and other space concepts.  It was important to have good mathematical and statistical intuition, ie to know when things were roughly right or couldn't possibly be right quickly, without having to do laborious calculation, which computers can do.  That requires practice and mental effort rather than learning by rote.
Having retired from work, I use these skills rather less, and if I were to do some adult education now I would do it in IT rather than raw maths.  But if I were looking for a building block for the same career, maths would still be important. 

My math skills are very good. Hence why I understand ULEZ is a tax on poor Londoner and not green policy.

One word about maths - uneasy. I think thats because it requires too much concentration and holding figures in your head.

I developed a 'fear' of maths at school when we had a very strict teacher who punished randomly when we got things wrong or didnt understand something.

I use maths as little as possible, mainly checking bank details or household budgeting.

Im not bothered about improving my numeracy skills as Im a bit old now and the knowledge I have will see my through now.

Im not at all confident with numbers. I get by, day to day and that will do me.

If I wanted to access maths courses I know there are council adult education courses but these are NOT free. 

Envious, when I learnt Maths we used Logarithms and Matrices, yet in over 50 years I have never had an occasion where I needed to use them but I wish I'd advanced in algebra. 

I am very happy using basic Maths for everyday uses as I have yet to need to use any higher Mathematics. 

I would have liked to progress further in Mathematics, especially considering that Maths is used to make sense of so much of life the universe and everything, I would love to be able too see the world through Mathematics. 

I was going to be assessed for a Mathematics course with Waltham Forest recently but a medical issue got in the way. If another adult course comes up I would definitely like to take part.

If the Mayor were to run a Mathematics course that was open to retired people, I would be interested. 

I don't know where I would find a Maths course from the Mayor, I found the Waltham Forest one via a local paper.

Mathematics is an important subject.

The basics of counting are essential for everyday life where budgeting and finances are concerned. Maths used to horrify me as the first thing I would think of is algebra, pi, formulas and angles.

I never enjoyed Maths when I was at school. However, I later found that I had worked in three different Finance companies in the fifteen years of my career. My Father always encouraged me to learn the subject as he was very clever. 

I do not have a numeracy problem; I prefer to keep things basic as I get stressed easily.

I enjoy playing number games on my mobile; sometimes, they have formulas, and I try to solve them. 

Honestly, I would not know where to access an affordable mathematics course in London.

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I'm quite confident with maths due to good teachers. Always enjoyed and use the practical aspects like planning, estimating, map reading, time and money calculations etc.

Reached A level and first year degree standard.

Futurelearn, Openlearn BBC and local libraries all offer maths at various levels. Many on-line courses but make sure they are English based as others, particularly American ones, can pose problems with language and terminology.

"Everyday" is my first response to the word maths; I quite enjoy quickly working out a monthly household budget for example, but don't enjoy realising how much my scumbag housing association is putting up my rent if they go for a 7% rise. 

I don't want numeracy courses. I.was rubbish at school O- level maths, but am fine with addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and percentages which are all that are needed for everyday life.

“Comfortable” would be the word I would use. Perhaps even confident.
 

I suspect the reason I like maths, is that it’s exact, at least at a day to day level.
 

What I mean by that is unlike the English language, there are no nuances of meaning, numbers are absolute. At its most basic level  therefore…..1 + 1 = 2, and 2 -1 =1. Therefore a £1 saved to day is available to be spent tomorrow. Spend the £1 today it’s not available tomorrow.  Using words in the language there are no equivalent to numbers, so for example, the words “possibly, maybe and perhaps”  could all the mean the same thing, but depending on the context might have shades on meaning that numbers do not have. 
 

For me maths becomes fun and easy. Sudoku is a brain teaser, 99.9% of them being solvable and therefore fun.

I believe that measurements or other scales are also easy, although I can easily imagine that some could become confused about the units being used, metres, yards, inches, centimetres, gallons or litres, etc.