What will this subject enable me to do?
Studying mathematics will improve your ability to think logically and analytically. These are skills that are transferable to any profession. In addition to this you will learn mathematics specific skills such as number, algebra and shape and space techniques.
Being a successful mathematician can lead to many career opportunities, including business, finance, medicine, engineering and the sciences.
Department Staff
B Walton
Head of Department
L Coleman
Second in Department
I Aziz
Teacher
C Brown
Teacher
S Cooper
Teacher
J Crafts
Maths Teaching Assistant
P Hodson
Teacher
H Hutchcroft
Teacher
C McLean
Teacher
C Slack
Teacher
N Spencer
Teacher
S Wakefield
Teacher
Keystage 3
Homework and support Homework will be set on Satchel-One.
| Year | Curriculum Plan | Assessment |
| 7 | When beginning in Year 7, all students sit a ‘baseline’ test to assess the mathematical knowledge acquired at Key Stage 2. Following this, students cover the 6 key strands of mathematics (number, algebra, geometry, probability, statistics and proportionality) during the course of the year. | During each term, students complete an assessment that reflects the content that they have been taught during that term. These assessments are 1 hour long. 1 assessment is non-calculator and the other two assessments are calculator based. |
| 8 | The Year 8 course follows a very similar pattern to that covered in Year 7. Students will again cover the 6 key strands of mathematics but different topics within each strand. | During each term, students complete an assessment that reflects the content that they have been taught during that term. These assessments are 1 hour long. 1 assessment is non-calculator and the other two assessments are calculator based. |
Keystage 4
Homework and support Homework will be set on MathsWatch
| Curriculum Plan |
| Students will study for the AQA GCSE Mathematics course |
| They will study the 6 key topic areas (number, algebra, geometry, probability, statistics, proportionality) in further detail than at Key Stage 3. Skills covered in Key Stage 3 will be built upon and interwoven to develop each students mathematical understanding. |
| During the duration of the Key Stage 4 course, students will be regularly assessed using past exam papers along with mini topic tests. These tests will provide ‘working at grades’ and will identify areas for students to focus on. |
| At the end of the course, all students will be assessed on three exams at the end of the course (90 minutes each) at either Higher Tier (Grades 3 - 9) or Foundation Tier (Grades 1 – 5). This decision will be made in consultation with their teacher. |
Students have the option of choosing AQA GCSE Statistics.
| Curriculum Plan |
| Overview: GCSE Statistics helps students understand how data is collected, analysed and used in real-world decision-making. |
| Topics Covered: Planning investigations and collecting data, Sampling methods and avoiding bias, Representing data (charts, graphs, histograms, box plots, Averages and measures of spread, Probability and diagrams (Venn, tree diagrams) and Interpreting results and evaluating methods |
| Assessment: The course is exam-only with two written papers: Paper 1 1 hour 45 minutes 80 marks 50% of GCSE Paper 2 1 hour 45 minutes 80 marks 50% of GCSE Both papers assess all topics, with a mixture of short questions, structured problems and enquiry-based tasks. |
| Tiering Foundation: Grades 1–5 Higher: Grades 4–9 Students must take both papers at the same tier. |
Keystage 5
Homework and support Mathematical exercises will provide about 5 or 6 hours a week of independent work for each A Level course. Students are supported by their teachers; even outside of the envelope of the school day. They also have access to an online interactive textbook with worked solutions to questions called ‘Kerboodle’.
| Curriculum Plan |
| At Quarrydale, we offer 3 Post-16 Mathematics qualifications. Students can study A-Level Mathematics, A-Level Further Mathematics or Level 3 Core Maths. |
| Students have the opportunity to study AQA A-Level Mathematics, with some also studying AQA A-Level Further Mathematics. Both qualifications are assessed entirely by three 2-hour exams at the end of the course. |
| In A-Level Mathematics there is a mixture of mechanics and statistics to support the pure maths that makes up the majority of the course. |
| In A-Level Further Mathematics there is a mixture of mechanics and decision mathematics to support the pure maths that makes up the majority of the course. |
| Students have the opportunity to study AQA Core Maths at Post-16 which is equivalent to an AS-Level and focusses on problem solving and financial data. This is completed over one year and is assessed by two 90 minute exams at the end of the course |