Sunday, 12 October 2014 John Holman Mathematics: the foundation of STEM

Tuesday 11 April 2023

John Holman

Mathematics: the foundation of STEM

Michael Gove at the Royal Society 29 June 2011

• We are also committed to the existing programmes that have proven their worth over the past few years. For instance, the performance of the Further Maths Support Programme has been outstanding. The growth in the number taking Further Maths A level is testament to their success.

Outline of my talk

1. The importance of STEM

2. Mathematics in STEM

3. Some policy drivers

4. Post-16 mathematics: a challenge for us all

5. The most important thing to get right

Outline of my talk






Ferranti Mercury computer (1960s)

Moore’s Law

Computing power doubles every 18 months

CBI Education and Skills Survey, 2010

Responses from 694 employers

CBI Education & Skills Survey 2010

CBI Education & Skills Survey 2010

CBI Education and Skills Survey 2011


National Skills Audit 2010UK Commission for Employment and Skills

• predicts growth of highly skilled work

• importance of increased skill levels for future growth

• decline in lower skilled jobs

• especially fast-growing demand for STEM-skilled

technicians.

Source: C. Humphries (2006) Skills in a Global Economy, City and Guilds


Outline of my talk






A Level Maths earns a premium

Both graduates and non-graduates who took maths A-level ended up earning on average 10 per cent more than those of similar ability and background who did not.

CENTRE FOR ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE 1999

ScienceTechnologyEngineering

Mathematics

TechnologyEngineering

Mathematics

EngineeringMathematics

Mathematics

First year Chemists at the University of York


• About two-thirds of students have AS or A level mathematics


• First course: Gases and Equilibria

• handouts

Sources: Mathematical Needs, ACME June 2011

Outline of my talk






Some policy drivers

1. The economy

Some policy drivers

1. The economy

2. International comparisons


• In the last decade, we have plummeted down the international league tables: from 4th to 16th place in science; and from 8th to 28th in maths. While other countries – particularly Asian nations - have raced ahead we have, in the words of the OECD’s Director of Education, “stagnated.”

Some policy drivers

1. The economy


3. Revision of the national curriculum

Some policy drivers

1. The economy



4. Wolf report on vocational education

Some policy drivers

1. The economy



4. Wolf report on vocational education

5. Post-16 participation

Outline of my talk






33

A Level Mathematics entries, 1996-2009

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

2014201320122011201020092008200720062005200420032002200120001999199819971996

A L

evel

En

trie

s

Maths (16-18)

A level maths

Increases in A Level entries, 2005-2009

STEM A Level Entries

% increase in entries, 2005 to 2009

-10%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Maths

Econom

ics

Religious S

tudies

Media/F

ilm/ T

V S

tudies

Law

Art and D

esign

Sociology

Chem

istry

English

History

Physical E

ducation

Psychology

Physics

Biology

Business S

tudies

French

Geography

Design and T

echnology

All subjects

STEM A levels: 2008-2010

36

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

Male Female

Nu

mb

er o

f p

up

ils

that

to

ok

A l

evel

Mat

hs

2005 2009

A larger increase in females entering A level maths than males

9,800 more male pupils in 2009. This is

a 34% increase on 2005

8,700 more female pupils in 2009. This is

a 50% increase on 2005

37

Greater increases in sixth form colleges and maintained sixth

forms

45%49%

39%35%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Maintainedsixth form

Sixth FormCollege

FE College IndependentSchool

Key Stage 5 School Type

Inc

rea

se

in A

lev

el m

ath

s e

ntr

ies

20

05

to

20

09

A Level Maths

STEM higher education: 1999-2008

Coe, R J, Searle, J, Barmby, P, Jones, K and Higgins, S (2008) Relative difficulty of examinations in different subjects, Curriculum, Evaluation and Management Centre, Durham University

FE achievements in STEM• Royal Academy of Engineering FE data project

FE achievements in STEM• Of the qualifications achieved in 2008/09:

Section 6

Numbers of Mathematics and Mathematics related qualifications completed by 16-18 year olds in 2009/10

142,937

184,277

SCHOOLS

FE

Numbers of Numeracy qualifications completed by 16-18 years olds in 2009/10

1,029

161,933

SCHOOLS

FE

Section 2.5

Section 2.11

But …..

Student participation in mathematics post-16

Table from ACME’s Mathematical Needs: Mathematics in the workplace and in HE report, based on data from the Nuffield Foundation’s Is the UK an

Outlier? report.

Student participation in mathematics post-16

Table from ACME’s Mathematical Needs: Mathematics in the workplace and in HE report, based on data from the Nuffield Foundation’s Is the UK an

Outlier? report.

Mathematical 17 year olds

• 660,000 in the cohort• 286,000 did A levels• 85,000 did AS or A level Maths• ACME estimates that 120,000 need to do

maths for science and engineering, and 60,000 for social science.

Source: ACME/UCAS


• That is why I think we should set a new goal for the education system so that within a decade the vast majority of pupils are studying maths right through to the age of 18.

Post-16 mathematics for all: what does it mean?

• Do we have the right qualifications available?• Do we have enough specialist teachers?

Outline of my talk






How the world’s best-performing school systems come out on top McKinsey, September 2007

‘Above all, the top performing systems demonstrate that the quality of an education system depends ultimately on the quality of its teachers’

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Sunday, 12 October 2014 John Holman Mathematics: the foundation of STEM