Readability problems presented by mathematics text

“312. Even though a child may without difficulty be able to read what is written in a mathematics text book or on a work card, he may well find great difficulty in learning an unfamiliar piece of mathematics from the written word. This is likely to be the case however careful has been the choice of the language used. The ability to learn mathematics from the printed page is one which develops very slowly, so that even at the age of 16 there are few pupils who are able to learn satisfactorily from a text book by themselves. At the primary stage new topics and concepts should always be introduced by appropriate oral and practical work and the necessary links with what has gone before established by discussion.” (D.E.S., 1982)