Post-16

Who can take part?

This Work Group is for institutions in which Core Maths is established, and will involve teachers of Core Maths in at least their second year of teaching the qualification, who are looking to deepen their pedagogical understanding of contextualised problem solving. These may be teachers in post-16 settings whose main subject is maths or whose main subject is not maths. Participants will be expected, where appropriate, to work with colleagues in their own department.

Participants’ institutions must commit to:

• releasing them to attend all Work Group sessions
• allowing them to develop their practice in their classroom and share this with departmental colleagues

The sessions will be held online and run by the North Mids Maths Hub. The first session will be the 15th January so there is still time to apply below.

What is involved?

This Work Group gives teachers opportunities, through collaboration and experimentation, to develop improved teaching approaches that support the open-ended problem-solving skills. Core Maths students need to develop, and to share these with departmental colleagues. Participants will design and trial classroom activities, sharing and reflecting on their experiences with others in the Work Group.

What will you learn?

• Your students will have raised awareness of the use of maths and statistics in everyday life
• You will understand the philosophy of Core Maths, with its approach to teaching and learning maths through contextualised problem-solving in authentic situations
• You will develop your understanding by exploring a range of common Core Maths approaches and topics
• You will disseminate information on Core Maths pedagogy with your departments and support your school/college in developing clear ways of communicating and promoting its Core Maths offer.

What is the cost?

The Developing Core Maths Pedagogy project is fully funded by the Maths Hubs Programme so is free to participating schools/colleges.

How to Apply

Recruitment has now closed for 2025/26

Who can take part?

These Work Groups are for A level Maths institutions and involve established teachers who are looking to deepen their pedagogical understanding around a locally selected theme. Participants must be teaching a current A level Maths group. Participants who will find this Work Group particularly useful include those who may have already completed other A level subject knowledge and pedagogy CPD. It is focused on A level teachers working collaboratively to improve their practice.

What is involved?

Participants’ institutions must commit to:

• releasing them to attend all Work Group sessions
• allowing them to develop their practice in their classroom and share this with department colleagues.

Participants must commit to:

• attending all Work Group sessions and engaging with and completing activities between Work Group sessions.

What will you learn?

• Your students will have a deeper conceptual understanding of the A level Maths content
• You will understand the purpose of the ‘overarching themes’ of A level Maths, including use of technology, and their impact on teaching and learning in A level Maths
• You will have a deeper understanding of content pedagogic knowledge for A level Maths

What is the cost?

The Developing A Level Pedagogy project is fully funded by the Maths Hubs Programme so is free to participating schools/colleges.

How to Apply

Recruitment has now closed for 2025/26

Who can take part?

This programme is for teachers who are in the first two years of teaching Core Maths and are teaching a Core Maths class during the academic year 2025/26.

What is involved?

Teachers are expected to attend all programme sessions (the equivalent of three days), explore and engage with the bespoke resources of the programme, and to implement practice-based activities in between sessions to enable reflection on the pedagogical approaches they are trialling. Teachers need to be given time and support to try out ideas in their own classroom during the programme, and encouraged to reflect on developing and deepening their classroom practice. 

Principal focus is on Core Maths subject knowledge and pedagogy and the programme will be based on these six key themes: applying Fermi estimation and modelling, exploring statistics, making sense of finance, using the pre-release materials, developing critical analysis and creating contextualised activities.

What will you learn?

• Your students will have raised awareness of the use of maths and statistics in everyday life
• You will plan lessons/sequences of lessons to promote student understanding, confidence, and progress
• You will understand the philosophy of Core Maths, with its approach to maths through contextualised problem-solving
• You will understand how online learning and technology can be used to support Core Maths teaching

What is the cost?

The Specialist Knowledge for Teaching Mathematics Core Maths Teachers is fully funded by the Maths Hubs Programme so is free to participating schools/colleges.

How to Apply 

Recruitment has now closed for 2025/26

Who can take part?

This Work Group is for teachers of GCSE Maths, and for those teaching GCSE Maths resit and/or Functional Skills Maths. Participants may be based in secondary schools, UTCs, FE colleges, Sixth Form colleges, schools with post-16 provision, or other post-16 settings.

Participants will be representing their institution and working with colleagues between Work Group sessions, so ideally will have some responsibility to develop teaching and lead change. 

What is involved?

Participants are expected to attend the equivalent of three full days of workshops and to complete practice-based tasks between sessions. These tasks may include trying out an activity with students, observing the impact of different pedagogical approaches in their own class, reflecting on these activities, and preparing brief notes to support discussions in the following workshop. They may also be asked to contribute to online forum discussions.

Participants’ departments will, through shared good practice, become more effective in supporting students whose route towards a Level 2 qualification crosses phases of education. The development of transferable teaching techniques, which align to the underpinning principles of the NCETM’s Essence of Mathematics Teaching for Mastery, will be a pervasive element of the Work Group’s remit. 

It is expected that through their teachers’ participation in this project, students will be better prepared for transition from KS4 to post-16 (GCSE Resit and/or Functional Skills). In Key Stage 4, students will show an increased understanding of their route to a Level 2 qualification (either GCSE or Functional Skills), and in post-16 will demonstrate a more positive attitude to maths.

What will you learn?

Professional learning

Participants will have a deeper understanding of the approaches which will support students as they move from KS4 to post-16 (GCSE Resit and/or Functional Skills), including the importance of consistency of language and representations relating to specific areas of the curriculum.

Student outcomes

Students:

• are better prepared for transition from KS4 to post-16 (GCSE Resit and/or Functional Skills) 
• (in KS4) show an increased understanding of their route to a Level 2 qualification (either GCSE or Functional Skills)
• (in Post-16 GCSE and/or Functional Skills) demonstrate a positive attitude to maths.

What is the cost?

The Supporting Students to Achieve a L2 Qualification in Maths Work Group is fully funded by the Maths Hubs Programme so is free to participating schools/colleges.

How to Apply 

Recruitment has now closed for 2025/26