INTRODUCTION


RESIT STUDENTS NEED TO HAVE FIRST-CLASS TEACHING


The FE and skills sector has a unique challenge to help learners arriving at college after failing GCSE maths. And the ETF is there to help. By Imke Djouadj


G


CSE results day had a personal feel for me this year. I experienced the worry many young people and their parents and carers go through


when opening the results envelope and searching for that all-important maths grade. Did they make a ‘4’? What will happen if they didn’t and what are the options? Is their life crumbling around them already? My 16-year-old son and his friends live in a world of rapid change. Maths, digital skills and the ability to understand and analyse data are critical to make sound judgments in all areas of life and work, including the intricacies of politics and future career planning. Making informed decisions relies on the ability to understand the complexities around us, and mathematical thinking can help to develop a way of looking at ideas, stripping them down to their essentials, and then analysing the underlying patterns. The post-16 FE and skills sector has the unique challenge to provide first-class maths provision to students who may have failed their GCSEs at school but are motivated to start their life at college and their future career path – just not maths again! The Education and Training Foundation


(ETF) aims to support teachers and trainers working with resit students, adults refreshing their maths, and ESOL and SEND learners, as well as vocational students, to explore engaging and challenging approaches to maths teaching that involve learners and lead to improved results. The ETF’s course offer has changed


over the years to respond to the changing FE landscape with newly reformed


4 AUTUMN 2019 • InTUITIONMATHS


Functional Skills, T Levels and the successful Centres for Excellence in Maths programme. Courses and online provision are flexible and can be designed to your and your colleagues’ needs. Our team of Regional Specialist Leads


provide expert local support across England to explore your challenges and opportunities with you. We also offer the opportunity to get involved in collaborative practice events like our Outstanding Teaching Learning and Assessment (OTLA) and Professional Exchange Programmes. The ETF’s stated vision is to support the FE sector to succeed through reform and change, and to lead professional development for teachers, trainers, leaders and governors. I see maths (and English) delivery as an integral part of the sector’s achievement strategy. The combination of inclusive, robust leadership, professionalism and excellent maths (and English) provision are a strong measure of success. This inTuition Maths Supplement


explores some of the excellent work going on across the sector, with input from practitioners across the diverse range of FE settings. I hope it makes you take stock and reflect, and keeps you interested, and that you might even discover something new or an initiative to get involved in.


CASE STUDY BURY AND TRAFFORD COLLEGE


The project team at Bury and Trafford College recognised that the non- calculator test in the reformed Level 1 Functional Skills in maths would place an even greater emphasis on learners’ problem-solving skills. This was an area they recognised that their students struggled with, being put off by multiple-step questions. In response they decided to test whether the use of puzzles and games could help learners develop their skills and resilience in an engaging way. They piloted a number of card (Timetable Snap and Fraction Action) and paper-based (Sudoku, Hanjie and Suguru) games in their sessions. Students were initially slow to engage with the games and wary of doing childish activities. But once students became familiar with the games, tutors saw a growth in confidence, peer-to-peer support and engagement. The test run was so successful that, from now on, every Functional Skills maths scheme of work will include some form of puzzles or games.


Imke Djouadj is head of programmes for maths and English at the Education and Training Foundation.


The case study is one of the Outstanding Teaching Learning and Assessment (OTLA) projects funded by the Education and Training Foundation (ETF). This project was managed and supported by Creative Education, a training and consultancy agency providing services for education and training providers.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16