Post-16 Maths (2): The mathematically disadvantaged

The hurdle of the level 4 and all or nothing testing is the problem, we already have functional skills as an alternative but it will never have the necessary kudos. We need a system which values each step, similar to music exams. Acheive grade 1, great, move onwards... maybe put in a branching structure grade 5 (theory) or grade 5 (applications). The old OCR GCSE had some of these features. The other huge issue is the teaching population, the level of churn is huge, students who are already facing disadvantage are then also often those most affected by instability and lack of maths specific training.

In my experience (35 yrs in Secondary schools and by no means an academic) those who the system fail cannot be addressed by a rejuvenated/rethought curriculum and/or teaching strategy alone. There are many external social factors as well as an often intransigent school system. That withstanding, it frustrates me that the establishment doesn’t appear to seek to learn from those who have been more successful in achieving “results” with this kind of learner.