“With the exception of mathematics degrees,
more than 40 per cent of English 19 year olds studying STEM subjects in UK
universities do not have a mathematics qualification beyond GCSE.”
– The Smith Report, 2017
Although I may be biased, it seems sensible to promote Maths at Level 3 (Core Maths, Maths, Further Maths). Many non-STEM subjects require secure numerical skills – at A Level and beyond. When deciding what to write for this newsletter, I considered what the AMSP has to offer to this narrative.
The centre of this discussion is the students and the day-to-day conversations they have about their futures.
In the classroom
Often, we approach students to study Level 3 Maths but find they do not believe they are “good enough” at it, or they worry it will be “too hard”. For many students, this stems from lacking confidence in the subject.
Our Raising Confidence series of teacher courses provide staff with ideas to bring to the classroom. They aim to improving teaching of GCSE Maths and the skills of students.
Through our website
Where maths meets… the world of work! is a set of twelve videos with accompanying activities. Each video shows the journey of a person and how they got to the career they are in. Each one is designed to take one hour to complete.
A personal favourite of mine is Where’s the maths in that? You will find PowerPoints suitable for Year 5 to Year 12 students. Each one has suggestions on how to use the resource and can be used as starters or plenaries to create discussion of Maths outside of the classroom.
At our events
One of our events that we repeat throughout the year is Maths is Everywhere. Aimed at Year 7 – 11. This online event allows students the opportunity to use maths beyond the curriculum, whilst also being informed about options after GCSE. Dates of upcoming events are found at the bottom of the link.
Another event I would like to highlight is our successful Which Career? events. Pupils are introduced to three guests who discuss how maths is used in their career. This will provide students with the opportunity to link what they are studying now with their future. Dates of upcoming events are found at the bottom of the webpage.
I hope within this article, you can find something to use to continue the discussion between “Maths” in the classroom and “Maths” in the future of your pupils.
By Naz Abdullah