Mathematics

About Key Stage 4 Maths

Key Stage 4 builds on the foundations laid in earlier Years and prepares pupils for their GCSE examinations and a wide range of further study options, including A-levels, vocational courses and apprenticeships.

The curriculum has been designed to develop logical thinking, analytical skills and build confidence. We provide opportunities for independent practice to allow pupils time to consolidate their learning and aim to build pupils’ resilience to persevere when faced with a challenge.  

Curriculum Overview

Topics covered in Year 10 include

• Number - fractions, decimals, percentages, factors, bounds, indices, standard form, urds
• Algebra - sequences, solving linear, quadratic and simultaneous equations, linear graphs, inequalities and rearranging formulae
• Shape - Pythagoras and trigonometry, bearings, perimeter, area and volume, transformations, similar shapes, constructions, loci and scale drawings
• Probability - data collection and representation, cumulative frequency curves, box plots, pie charts, histograms, tree diagrams, venn diagrams and set notation

Topics covered in Year 11 include

• Number - ratio, proportion, iteration
• Algebra - equations, formulae and inequalities, functions, algebraic fractions, proof, quadratics
• Shape - sectors and prisms, trigonometry, 3D shapes including cones and spheres, volume and surface area, transformations, similarity and congruence, circle geometry
• Probability - probability trees, conditional probability 

Assessment and Examinations

Students will sit GCSE Mathematics at the end of Year 11. 

The exam board is Edexcel; examinations consist of one calculator paper and two non-calculator papers. The assessment covers the full breadth of the Key Stage 4 curriculum and tests understanding, fluency, and the ability to apply mathematical concepts to solve problems.  

Support and Enrichment

Our school offers a range of support to help students succeed in Key Stage 4 Maths, including after school revision sessions once a fortnight, targeted intervention sessions and online resources. Students are encouraged to become independent learners by making use of the school subscription to Sparx Maths to deepen their understanding and enjoyment of the subject beyond the classroom.

Overview

Maths is an exciting and fascinating subject and whilst compulsory, incredibly popular at GCSE.  We offer lots of courses at Sixth Form to allow all students to continue to study the Maths that they enjoy!

Core Maths has an entry requirement of a 5, whilst A level Maths and Further Maths are for those on a grade 8 or above*. Core Maths studies a lot of the Maths wanted by colleges, universities and employers.  We get to study many things that are missed at GCSE, such as Finance (taxes, interest rates and student loans), Project Management, Risk and Fermi estimations to name a few!

A Level Maths is exciting, interesting and challenging. The aim is to develop your understanding of maths and mathematical processes in a way that promotes confidence and fosters enjoyment. A Level maths utilises strong algebraic manipulation and skills to allow us to look at some more abstract concepts. Mathematics is regarded as a facilitating subject by Russell Group universities. As well as traditional areas of study, the new specification includes working with a large data set and the use of programs such as Excel. Studying involves discussion, individual work, note-taking and independent research. Success in this course depends as much on hard work as ability and a high degree of self-motivation is required.

This is one of the hardest A Levels offered, and due to how challenging A Level Maths is – we stipulate that applicants must achieve a grade 8* at GCSE to join our course.

(*Some students with a 7 in Maths will be considered on individual merit, often a teacher recommendation is important here)

Our Further Maths A Level students take Maths even Further! Looking at imaginary numbers, matrices, infinite sequences, and much more – this is for those students who love Maths and enjoy doing lots of practice.

We are one of the rare schools that offer Further Maths at AS Level as well as the full A level, allowing students to take this as a 4th A Level in year 12 and drop to focus on three A Levels in year 13.  This flexibility allows for more choice for our students and we are pleased to be able to offer this.

A Level Maths

You will explore higher levels of algebra, be introduced to calculus, more trigonometry, and a host of other fascinating topics.

We will provide you with logins to online websites with fantastic content for you to learn and explore new concepts, work through practice questions and also assess yourself. You will also be supplied with textbooks that will cover everything you need to work on.

If you are considering further courses such as Engineering, Sciences, Computing, Economics, Psychology, or Maths – Maths features heavily and A level Maths will prepare you well for further study in these areas.
http://www.mathscareers.org.uk/article/degree-courses-a-level-mathematics/  This site looks into which subjects make use of Maths – and is worth exploring.

Assessment

All exams are sat at the end of Year 13. There are three 2-hour exams. Two papers are on ‘pure’ Maths, and one on ‘applied’ statistics and mechanics.

A Level Further Maths

A-Level Further Maths goes far deeper into the study of Mathematics. This is a course for those who love the subject, and want to explore some of Mathematics’ more complicated patterns and problems. Those taking Further Maths will also need to take A Level Mathematics. Further Mathematicians at Poole High School are given lots of support in a small class setting.

Whilst this course is a challenge, the large Maths department at Poole High School is more than prepared to support our students.  We offer a substantial 11 hours of lessons per fortnight, with teachers offering help outside of lessons as well.  There is a wealth of experience in the department, with different teachers specialising in Mechanics, Statistics, Algorithms, and Pure Maths.  We have lots of teachers who are passionate and excited to work with you!

Further Maths is possibly the hardest A Level available in the country, but with great challenge comes great reward.  On the Further Maths course, we discover Complex Numbers – extending our number system to allow us to solve equations previously thought impossible! Further Maths should be studied by anyone with a love for Maths – regardless of future plans.  If you are a budding artist, football star, or anything in between and also have a fascination with Maths – Further Maths can still be for you. Further Maths covers some truly beautiful Maths, and helps to answer questions you never knew needed asking.

You will also cover matrices, vectors, proof, and many more beautiful topics.  Due to the difficulty of the course, we specify that applicants must obtain a grade 9 at GCSE to study Further Maths A Level.

Assessment

Due to the special nature of the Further Maths course.  We do offer students the opportunity to sit AS exams for Further Maths at the end of year 12.  Further Maths is allowed to be taken as a 4th option, and then students are encouraged to focus on 3 A Levels by year 13.  The AS exams in Further Maths helps students decide whether to carry on Further Maths, or to ‘cash in’ their AS grade.
There are 3 AS exams, with the OCR(MEI) exam board:  Core Pure (AS), Modelling with Algorithms, and Mechanics Minor.
At the end of year 13 there will be 4 exams: Core Pure, Modelling with Algorithms, Mechanics Minor, and Statistics Minor.

Core Maths

For those achieving a 5 or above in GCSE, we offer Core Maths. This has grown massively and is now one of the most popular Sixth Form choices.  Core Maths is taken alongside 3 full A Levels or BTEC equivalent, and is worth up to 20 UCAS points.

There has been huge demand from both employers, Colleges and Universities for students to continue to study Maths post-16, to ensure they have the skills needed to access numerical, analytical and problem-solving tasks in the workplace. Universities and employers have spent years asking for a course like this. 

Universities recognise the benefits students gain from taking Core Maths, which will not only support their university studies, but also their future career and employment, and many make alternative offers (normally 1 degree lower) to students with Core Maths qualifications, who apply for some of their degree courses.

Core Maths develops real-world problem-solving skills, using Maths. Looking at finance, business, data analysis, getting students to apply it to real-life situations. The course encourages problem solving, and deep understanding of the task in hand – before using common sense and the application of Mathematics to work through to a solution. This course is ideal for anyone going on to study biology, business, psychology, sociology, geography, and many more subjects with subtler Maths elements that analyse data.

Assessment

Core Maths currently runs over just 1 year and exams are sat at the end of Year 12. There are 2 exam papers to sit.

Careers and Future Opportunities

Mathematics is a highly regarded subject and opens up unlimited career possibilities. A Level Maths is one of the most respected and useful A Levels on offer. A recent study from the University of Nottingham showed those who had taken A Level Maths receive an 11% premium on their salary by the time they are 34, compared to peers without the A Level. Due to Maths demand for rigour understanding, problem solving, and challenge, academics and employers value A Level Maths as it shows an applicant has all of these skills. Mathematics degrees contain a broad range of disciplines. Mathematics is a useful qualification to have if you want to study accounting, statistics, sciences, engineering, economics and finance, computer science, business studies, medicine, architecture etc. Several of our students have gone straight into engineering apprenticeships.

A Level Further Mathematics is highly regarded by universities – and it is not uncommon for offers for course places to be lowered if they include Further Maths A level. Those students wishing to pursue studies in Maths, Physics, Engineering, or Computer Science will often benefit in their first year at university – as Further Maths covers much content that is used at undergraduate level.

Students achieving a Core Maths qualification would have developed their analytical and problem-solving skills, analysed data and applied maths to real-life situations, which will be extremely useful in any career or study they decide to pursue.