On 14 October, we were warmly welcomed to two different schools in Peterborough where we spent some lovely time with their Year 11 students.
Students started with some warmup maths questions before engaging in a careers talk about the importance of maths, and why they should all be considering doing maths after GCSE. We really enjoyed talking with students about their plans for what they might study after Year 11, but it was clear that not all students realise how much maths is in many other A level and BTEC subjects, and how having a Level 3 maths qualification would take them much further in their future education and career pathways.
After the careers talk, the students then took part in a competition in groups of four, which got increasingly exciting and heated as time went on. Teachers from both schools have told us that some of their students were initially sceptical or uninterested about doing maths beyond GCSE, but after the event they saw a change in their student’s perception, and on the way out of the event, many of them were talking about what type of maths might be the most suitable for them.
If you have a group of students who are interested in doing an enrichment event, there are a number of upcoming events in our region:
- Take Maths Further! – Year 10 Enrichment Day on Tuesday 10 January at the Centre of Mathematical Science in Cambridge.
- Year 10 Maths Enrichment Day – Thursday 12 January at the University of Essex in Colchester
- Hertfordshire Year 10 Enrichment Day – Friday 6 January at the University of Hertfordshire in Hatfield
We hope to see you all there!
Also, Maths Feast is back! The popular Year 10 group competition is running in various locations around the region.
By Lily Tang-Gentile