麻豆淫院

Enjoyment of maths is a central ambition within Scottish education and integral to the Scottish curriculum (the ). It is now 10 years since the Scottish Government published the report, which set out a vision for Scotland to become a ‘Maths Positive Nation’. As Scottish education undergoes significant curricular reform, through the recent curriculum improvement cycle, consolidating maths positivity alongside knowledge, skills and progression remains a priority.

The move from primary to secondary in Scotland

In Scotland, the transition from primary to secondary school happens at the age of around 12, where learners leave the single classroom environment for a more subject-specific structure. The Curriculum for Excellence supports this by having the Broad General Education (BGE) which bridges primary and secondary settings. Although this helps to provide continuity for educators, the experiences of learners can be more complex; navigating new friendships, timetables and unfamiliar school layout may feel daunting. The wider impacts of this transition can be far-reaching, and research has shown an impact on engagement, attainment and wellbeing.

The Enhanced Maths Route (EMR)

For teachers who work with learners as they move into the secondary phase, research has highlighted the importance of developing a continuity of approach. To support this, the ‘Enhanced Mathematics Route’ (EMR) was established as an optional part of our initial teacher education (ITE) programme at the University of Glasgow (Dumfries campus) in Scotland, in collaboration with our local authority partners.

‘Our EMR students are well placed to observe the challenges teachers face when supporting learners as they move on from primary.’

EMR students undertake an additional mathematics course alongside a four-week placement within (lower) secondary (ages 11 to 14) in addition to their primary placement. Since our EMR students experience both primary and secondary settings, they are well placed to observe the challenges teachers face when supporting learners as they move on from primary. With this in mind, five EMR students were asked to reflect on their experiences. The prompt questions are shown in table 1.

Table 1: Prompt questions

EMR students’ reflections on the move to secondary maths

Although students’ individual experiences varied, they identified three key areas that could potentially help support the primary to secondary transition. These were collaborative partnerships, pedagogical approaches and the impact of ability streaming.

• All EMR students observed some strong collaborations between primary and secondary teachers and emphasised how beneficial this seemed to be. This included professional development (training) together with more informal discussions between teachers. Consistency was also supported by the Dumfries and Galloway Framework for Numeracy, which provides progression between different phases of learning.
• Pedagogical approach was an area the students agreed was different. Although they noted common ground in terms of some teaching materials, they also noticed fewer concrete materials being used in secondary (with a focus on the abstract approach). Many believed this was due to the structure of the school day (specifically time constraints) and sometimes down to individual teaching style. They also reflected on the amount of material secondary teachers were required to cover in a short space of time.
• Some students discussed the impact of ability setting (streaming) and how this can be both restrictive and Interestingly, students commented that secondary teachers were better placed to ‘stretch’ the more able learners. This agrees with one of the findings in a by the Scottish Government in 2021.

Next steps

Although these finding offer only a snapshot view from a small group of students, they present some interesting questions for ITE programmes and policymakers in Scotland and further afield. In particular: How can our evolving curriculum balance the differing realities (and pedagogical approaches) of the primary and secondary maths classroom? Additionally: How can education policy support more structured collaboration between primary and secondary teachers?

In terms of transition programmes, students reflected on the diverse needs of learners, highlighting that programmes often tended to focus on creative subjects (as opposed to maths). This observation could be particularly relevant as the Scottish Government continues to refine its strategy for supporting the transition from primary to secondary education.

Finally, as the curriculum review continues in Scotland it would be interesting to examine how ITE programmes help ‘bridge the gap’ and explore how programmes such as the EMR offer a valuable model to enable teachers to promote maths positivity and support learning at this important, transitional phase.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Dumfries and Galloway Council and our partnership schools for supporting the EMR students.