New UK research confirmed for the first time that children taught math using a Chinese-style method fare much better than their peers, backing a decision to use such techniques in British primary schools.

An independent study by Oxford University shows pupils taught in a version of Asian "mastery" methods do "significantly better".

The research looked specifically at the Inspire Maths program, widely used in Singapore, and in which Shanghai pupils have also been shown to excel. Interest was prompted by the success of Shanghai and Singapore in 2012 in international rankings that showed how 15-year-olds compared in math. Shanghai was tops, Singapore second and the UK ranked 26th.