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Studying Core Maths helps to develop strong numeracy and problem-solving skills. It keeps maths skills fresh and will help students apply the maths they need for other subjects they are studying alongside it. The government has announced that there will be additional funding of £900 for each Level 3 Core Maths student in 2024-2025. You can read about the announcement here.

How can Core Maths support students with their other subjects?

Studying Core Maths helps students to develop their quantitative and problem-solving skills, and improves their confidence with the mathematical content of other level 3 courses that they may be taking.

A broad range of A level and vocational courses require the maths skills that Core Maths helps to develop, including:

  • Biology and Environmental Science
  • Business and Economics
  • Geography
  • Health and Social Care
  • Psychology
  • Sociology
  • Sports Science and PE

Degrees such as Biology, Geography, Psychology, and Business Studies all expect mathematical competency that can be supported by studying Core Maths. Some universities now provide alternative entry offers which reduce one of the entry grades required by students who, in addition to the course requirements, attain a grade B or above in a level 3 maths qualification.

Simon Holland CGeog, Head of Geography at Bilborough College, said, “We were a pilot centre for Core Maths and we have really noticed how much better our Core Maths students cope in geography with stats and the NEA (Non-examined assessment).

The AMSP is keen to work with relevant subject associations to further raise awareness of Core Maths and the benefits of students studying it alongside other subjects. We are already working with The Royal Geographical Society, The Association for Science Education, and The Association for the Teaching of Psychology and would welcome enquiries from similar organisations.

What support is available?

The AMSP offers support and guidance to maths departments on setting up Core Maths provision, and runs professional development for teachers (including those of other subjects) to develop Core Maths specific pedagogy and subject knowledge.

Course length 12 hour(s)

Maths for A level Biology is a course for teachers wishing to build their confidence in teaching the mathematical requirements (from page 24) of A level Biology. This course is being run in partnership with the Association for Science Education as part of the ‘Mathematics for Biology Teacher’ project (MfBT) with support from the department for education.

Course length 12 hour(s)

Maths for A level Geography is a course for teachers wishing to build their confidence in teaching the quantitative requirements (page 28) of A level Geography. This course is part of the Geography and Core Maths Initiative, which is being run in conjunction with the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) For further information and resources see www.rgs.org/geomaths.

These free, online sessions are for geography teachers who wish to build their confidence when using mathematics in the teaching of A Level Geography. The six sessions will look at a range of statistical and analytical content. During the sessions we will model approaches to teaching mathematical content and share ideas on how to engage students in meaningful discussions about data in geography.

Course length 12 hour(s)

Maths for A level Psychology is a course for teachers wishing to build their confidence in teaching the mathematical requirements (see page 38) of A level Psychology. This course is being run in partnership with the Association for the Teaching of Psychology.

Course features:

  • Eight interactive live online sessions, approximately fortnightly, each up to 90 minutes long
  • Access to our online Integral platform
  • Email support from a tutor and access to an online group forum

Course length 5 hour(s)

In addition to our online courses in Maths for BiologyGeography, and Psychology, we are delighted to offer a free one-day professional development conference, ‘Working with Other Subjects,” which focuses on developing confidence in teaching the mathematical requirements of A level Biology, Geography, and Psychology.

There will be optional workshops so that you can focus on the mathematical requirements that feature in your course. Strategies and ideas will be provided for teachers to use in their classrooms to deepen their student’s understanding, and there will be an opportunity to develop confidence in working with real data using technology.

This event is being run in partnership with the Association of Science Educators(opens in a new tab)The Royal Geographical Society(opens in a new tab), and The Association for the Teaching of Psychology(opens in a new tab).

These On Demand Professional Development (ODPD) pods are designed to support teachers who are thinking of embarking on professional development for Core Maths and those teaching topics from Core Maths in other subject areas.

This course contains content which would be ideal for any of:

  • A Maths teacher who has not previously taught GCSE Maths at Higher level
  • A teacher of a subject which contains Maths, such as Geography, Psychology or Biology
  • A teacher who would like to be confident in key topics from GCSE which underpin those which are used in the teaching of Core Maths.

In each pod, teachers will experience a variety of content including:

  • a short video introducing the topic
  • practice materials
  • triggers for reflection and suggestions for further study.

Teachers will be encouraged to interact and collaborate with others studying the same material via the online forums. An expert tutor will be monitoring the forums and will respond to queries.If you’re interested in a deeper view of what’s involved in this unique form of professional development, you may enjoy this video: What is ODPD?) [<29 minutes]

The course offers total flexibility; teachers can access the materials, day or night, over a period of up to one year. Teachers will be able to track their progress within the course and to see when they have completed a section or a pod.

These On Demand Professional Development (ODPD) pods are designed to support teachers offering Core Maths or considering offering Core Maths, especially those who are using the Integral Core Maths platform and those teaching topics from Core Maths in other subject areas.

The course comprises a series of ‘pods’, designed to complement our Live Online Professional Development (LOPD) course Core Maths common topics(opens in a new tab). When complete, this will provide teachers with professional development covering all aspects of the existing Core Maths qualifications.  

In each pod, teachers will experience a variety of content including:

  • short videos explaining the ideas behind the topic
  • practice materials
  • triggers for reflection and suggestions for further study.

Teachers will be encouraged to interact and collaborate with others studying the same material via the online forums. An expert tutor will be monitoring the forums and will respond to queries.

If you’re interested in a deeper view of what’s involved in this unique form of professional development, you may enjoy this video: What is ODPD?) [<29 minutes]

The course offers total flexibility; teachers can access the materials, day or night, over a period of up to one year. Teachers will be able to track their progress within the course and to see when they have completed a section or a pod.

What is Core Maths?

You may not have heard of Core Maths – that’s because it’s a fairly new type of level 3 qualification. It’s been designed to build students’ confidence with using maths and focuses on really useful maths skills that they’ll need for work and study.

Core Maths is an umbrella term for a specific type of level 3 maths qualification. A Core Maths course can be taken alongside A levels and vocational qualifications. It’s equal in size to an AS level qualification and carries the same number of UCAS tariff points.

Core Maths focuses on using maths to solve problems that arise in everyday life, business, or scientific contexts. It’s designed to:

  • consolidate and build mathematical and statistical understanding
  • develop confidence in thinking mathematically and applying maths in unfamiliar situations
  • build skills in mathematical reasoning and communication
  • support students’ learning in other subjects requiring quantitative skills
  • prepare students for the real-life mathematical demands of further study and employment.

The subject content of Core Maths qualifications varies between different specifications, but they all include:

  • working with data
  • understanding risk and probability
  • understanding averages and variation in statistics
  • using exponential functions to model growth and decay
  • interpreting solutions in the context of the problem
  • understanding sources of error and bias when problem-solving.

In addition, most Core Maths qualifications include:

  • percentage change
  • interpretation of graphs
  • financial maths
  • using standard units
  • Fermi estimation
  • the Normal distribution
  • correlation, knowing it doesn’t imply causation
  • making and evaluating assumptions when modelling or problem solving.

Students may also study topics such as critical path analysis and statistical hypothesis testing.

Core Maths is designed for students who’ve achieved a grade 4 or above in GCSE Mathematics, but don’t intend to take AS/A level Mathematics. It’s particularly valuable for any student planning a future that requires good quantitative and statistical skills, whether that’s in higher education or employment.

Encouraging students to study Core Maths

We have produced a series of videos, each paired with a classroom resource, which showcase how the skills that students gain from studying Core Maths can be applied to different careers.

Leaflet

We also provide a range of information and promotional materials about Core Maths for students, explaining how it can help them achieve their future study and career goals. It includes a series of printed postcards and posters, each providing an example of how Core Maths supports the study of a different subject, such as Psychology.

Postcards

Sports Science and PE
Psychology
Health and Social Care
Geography and Sociology
Business and Economics
Biology and Environmental Science
A poster explaining how the skills learned in Core Maths assist with studying Sports Science and PE
Sports Science and PE
Psychology
Health and Social Care
Geography and Sociology
Business and Economics
Biology and Environmental Science

We also provide a leaflet for students that tells them about the skills they can learn from Core Maths and how it can help them in further study and the workplace.

These materials are available free of charge and you might like to request copies to give to students who are considering taking the subject you teach. Our office is currently closed due to Covid-19 but, if you’d like to receive printed copies of these items, please send a request to [email protected] and we’ll send out the required materials as soon as we’re able to.

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