Mathematics:
the foundation of STEM
John Holman
Saturday, 28 May 2016
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
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
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
CBI Education & Skills
CBI Education and Skills Survey 2011
CBI Education and Skills Survey 2011
National Skills Audit 2010
UK 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
CBI Education and Skills Survey 2011
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
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
Science
Technology
Engineering
Mathematics
Technology
Engineering
Mathematics
Engineering
Mathematics
Mathematics
First year Chemists at the University of York
First year Chemists at the University of York
•
About two-thirds of students have AS or A
level mathematics
First year Chemists at the University of York
•
First course: Gases and Equilibria
•
handouts
Sources: Mathematical Needs, ACME June 2011
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
Some policy drivers
1. The economy
Some policy drivers
1. The economy
2. International comparisons
Michael Gove at the Royal Society
29 June 2011
• 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
2. International comparisons
3. Revision of the national curriculum
Some policy drivers
1. The economy
2. International comparisons
3. Revision of the national curriculum
4. Wolf report on vocational education
Some policy drivers
1. The economy
2. International comparisons
3. Revision of the national curriculum
4. Wolf report on vocational education
5. Post-16 participation
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
A Level Entries
A
l
e
v
e
l
m
a
t
h
s
A Level Mathematics entries,
1996-2009
Maths (16-18)
70,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
33
All subjects
Design and Technology
Geography
French
Business Studies
Biology
Physics
Psychology
Physical Education
History
English
Chemistry
Sociology
Art and Design
Law
Media/Film/ TV Studies
Religious Studies
Economics
Maths
-10%
Increases in A Level entries,
2005-2009
STEM
A Level
Entries
% increase in entries, 2005 to 2009
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
STEM A levels: 2008-2010
A larger increase in females
entering A level maths than males
Number of pupils that took A level Maths
50,000
9,800 more male pupils in
2009. This is a 34%
increase on 2005
40,000
8,700 more female pupils
in 2009. This is a 50%
increase on 2005
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
Male
Female
2005
2009
36
A Level Greater increases in sixth form
Maths colleges and maintained sixth
forms
Increase in A level maths entries
2005 to 2009
70%
60%
50%
49%
45%
39%
40%
35%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Maintained
sixth form
Sixth Form
College
FE College
Independent
School
Key Stage 5 School Type
37
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 1618 years olds in 2009/10
1,029
SCHOOLS
FE
161,933
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
Michael Gove at the Royal Society
29 June 2011
• 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
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
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’