Resources and Facilities

Every classroom in the mathematics department contains an interactive whiteboard, a selection of educational textbooks and furniture to accommodate up to 30 students. Pupils from years 7 and 8 will make regular use of the Exploring Maths Key Stage 3 textbook series. This series provides exercises, ideas and topics built around the new national curriculum for Key Stage 3. Alternatively, in years 9, 10 and 11, students will focus on the completion of their GCSE Key Stage 4 qualification and will reference their work from the Higher and Foundation Tier Edexcel Active Book series. Both GCSE texts are available electronically on the College's internal network.

In addition, there are currently two computer rooms, allocated solely to the Curriculum Area. Each of these rooms contains top quality multi-media PCs and other audio-visual equipment, including an interactive whiteboard. This access provides an opportunity for our students to use a wealth of electronic resources, designed and bought by the department to expand and aide our pupils' mathematical development. Furthermore, these resources have also been made available via the College's virtual learning environment (VLE) as a beneficial way of allowing our students to make use of these resources beyond the classroom (via an internet connection).

Within the VLE, there is a link to MathsWatch, which is a video resource that describes how to complete and tackle questions across the whole curriculum for Key Stages 3 and 4. Staff members also encourage our pupils to use www.mymaths.co.uk, www.mathsnetib.com as a means of setting electronic homework tasks and providing easy access to revision topics.

In all the classrooms, wall space is positively used to create informative and stimulating displays that reflect the topics that are taught across both Key Stages. Likewise, we make good use of corridor displays of students' work, whilst also including real world applications of mathematics.

Key Stage 3:
Students follow the national curriculum in mathematics.

Key Stage 4:
Students follow the Edexcel GCSE Modular course. Pupils take a tier of entry appropriate to their ability. Foundation tier covers GCSE grades C to G and Higher tier covers GCSE grades A* to D. Students can take a combination of Foundation and Higher Tier Units. There is no longer any coursework for GCSE Mathematics. Students gaining the Higher Grades are able to take a Free Standing Maths Unit which is a bridging Unit between GCSE and Post 16 mathematics and has UCAS points attached to it.

Key Stage 5:
International Baccalaureate.

There are 3 courses for Mathematics in the International Baccalaureate.

All courses have two exams and the Higher level has one additional Options paper which is currently Discrete Mathematics. Courses are at Higher Level, Standard Level and Standard Level Mathematical Studies. (More detail on these courses can be found on the sixth form area of the website.)