Newsletter, January 2008

Each pilot region has now established connections with partner schools as well as working with the local National Centre for Excellence in Teaching Mathematics, Connexions Careers Services and Local Education Authorities. They are building close links with local employers.

The more maths grads Advisory Group met in November 2007. In addition to the sponsoring bodies, there was participation by many associated organisations and groups, including the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education, Action on Access, Connexions, Specialist Schools and Academies Trust and STEMNET, as well as other HEFCE-funded projects in physics and engineering.

Plans for the more maths grads Employers' Forum, to develop and facilitate links with and participation by employers, were progressed and it is expected that this group will be formed shortly. 

There was a lively discussion following exciting presentations by Farzana Aslam (Coventry) and David Arrowsmith (QMUL) on the work to date and future plans in their regions, working with schools, teachers, pupils and employers.  The Advisory Group was delighted to hear of the progress since its summer meeting, congratulating all those involved in the Project.

more maths grads is working closely with the mathscareers website to share resources between the projects and raise awareness of each. For more on careers, see http://www.mathscareers.org.uk/.

New Year Drinks Reception

more maths grads hosted a New Year Drinks Reception in conjunction with the Mathematics Promoters Network. This was an opportunity to welcome in the new year and also to introduce Makhan to the mathematics community and its contacts. The event was held at De Morgan House in London.

The Nuffield Foundation has agreed to work with the more maths grads pilots in its Schools and Colleges Bursaries Scheme. This funds work placements for A-level students in the summer vacation. Projects run for four to six weeks students receive a £75 a week bursary.

The London East team has set up links with schools in four London boroughs.

These areas contain a wide variety of people from many cultures and traditions. The teachers are working extremely hard under a great deal of pressure, and turnover of staff in some schools is high. Despite this, there is a lot of support for our work.

In Tower Hamlets and Newham the schools we work with have a high proportion of students from Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani and backgrounds. Students' families often encourage them to become doctors, so they take three sciences and maths at AS-level then drop maths for the final year. We are keen for students to see why maths is needed and that it is worthwhile to study maths in its own right.

In Barking and Dagenham many students come from white, working-class backgrounds. We are working with the borough maths consultant to talk to students about how maths is used in a broad range of careers and to schedule events

at several schools.

In Hackney we have strong links with two very different institutions: the major sixth form education provider BSix (Brooke House Sixth Form College) and a new city academy, the Bridge Academy. We are involved in a Year 7 project with students at the academy where we hope to kindle interest in geometry and dynamics by linking tessellations and symmetry to the work of web designers and professional artists.

Vivien talking to pupils in Tower Hamlets

Vivien Easson • v.easson[at]qmul.ac.uk

Zia Rahman • z.rahman[at]qmul.ac.uk

Our first task was to recruit partner schools and colleges. So we were delighted when all nine of the schools and colleges which we approached were keen to sign up to the project. We offered them a small programme of school-based enrichment, ranging from studying the geometry of paper folding with

Some examples from Leeds’  paper folding workshop

Year 7 to cracking codes and ciphers with Year 10. 

Before Christmas, we held a two hour quiz with 60 gifted and talented students from Woodkirk High School. It was great to feel the buzz of the pupils solving problems in small teams and a lovely end to the autumn term.

Other schools’ events include visits to the University, such as workshops on the maths of electronic music and lectures on maths and magic. We have also scheduled three “Maths at Work” days, where pupils will take part in interactive workshops with employers.

We are now planning for the terms ahead, meeting lots of people and pursuing many interesting avenues. We are teaming up with the National Centre for Excellence in Teaching Mathematics to film videos of people using maths at work - from environmental experts to professional costume makers. And we will be talking to careers advisors about where maths can take you!

Hazel Kendrick • h.j.kendrick[at]leeds.ac.uk

Ruth Holland • r.m.holland[at]leeds.ac.uk

We received an enthusiastic response from 15 Coventry & Warwickshire schools. We soon realised the partnership with each school would be different as each school identified different issues affecting  numbers taking mathematics. Most of the schools indicated the need  for mathematics career enrichment, especially for mathematics teachers.

A workshop on Improving standards in A-level Mathematics was held on 15 November in conjunction  with LEA Coventry & Warwickshire. It was attended by 48  A-level mathematics teachers from 14 local schools. The programme consisted of a talk from two Rolls-Royce representatives on the usefulness of mathematics, the Fun Maths Roadshow, a maths murder mystery and a session on the NCETM Portal by our regional co-ordinator.

A maths fun day was held in November at Coventry University, in conjunction with Coventry & Warwickshire SETPOINT. Attended by 129 Year 9 pupils and 15 teachers, the 

programme consisted of Maths Trail, Geometric Shapes by Paper Folding and Who Wants To Be a Millionaire – focusing on Percentages and Ratios. Mock university interviews were also conducted during November at two partner schools for eight pupils applying for a range of mathematical degrees.

A teachers’ event in Coventry

We are establishing good contacts with leading companies including Rolls-Royce, QinetiQ, Think Tank, Lloyds TSB, KPMG, Jaguar and TGS-NOPEC.

Farzana Aslam • farzana.aslam[at]coventry.ac.uk

Ewan Russell • ewan.russell[at]coventry.ac.uk

This strand runs from Sheffield Hallam University. It started by asking first year undergraduates in the mathematical sciences here and at Coventry, Leeds and QMUL to fill in a questionnaire detailing their prior experience of mathematics, the influences that had convinced them to study it and their expectations of studying at university. Although we are still in the process of analysing the

completed surveys, we were pleased that the response rate was 90% at Leeds, Coventry and SHU, although it was lower at QMUL due to the timing of the survey.

We have also begun a review of the current provision offered to undergraduates in the mathematical sciences within target universities. This focuses on curriculum, teaching, learning and assessment and support methods.

Mike Robinson • m.robinson[at]shu.ac.uk

Mike Thomlinson • m.m.thomlinson[at]shu.ac.uk

26 Jan: Careers event at Coventry Transport Museum (with Connexions)

21 Feb: Improving A-level standards in Mathematics workshop in Warwickshire.
22 Feb: Secondary Mathematics Conference (Mathematical Association and NCETM)

2 – 5 Apr: more maths grads session at the Mathematical Association and Association of Teachers of Mathematics combined conference in Keele

10 Apr: Yorkshire & the Humber Codes and Ciphers Workshop for National Science Week

9 & 26 Jun: “Science, HE and beyond for school careers advisers” event  organised by Royal Society of Chemistry, Science Council, UCAS

29 Jun – 4 Jul: Session at European Consortium for Mathematics in Industry 2008 conference in London