Here is a selection of research papers authored or co-authored by Observatory team members:
This paper is a follow-up to the Mathematics Pipeline report. While the original report contains summary statistics for participation and attainment in mathematics based on the sex, ethnicity and socio-economic status of students, this paper uses statistical modelling to investigate the intersectionality of these characteristics.
Post-16 mathematics is not just about A level Mathematics and Further Mathematics. Published in The Curriculum Journal, this paper offers a comprehensive view of the mathematics being learned in 19 A-level subjects, using a developed framework of general mathematical competences.
With successive governments trying to increase post-16 mathematics participation, an important question is, “Does studying A level Mathematics result in higher earnings for an individual?” This paper reports the answer is ‘yes’, with an 11% uplift in earnings at age 34 compared to those who have taken other A level subjects.
Before this paper, little was understood about the mathematics teacher workforce in FE colleges. Many have transitioned into FE from other careers, curriculum areas or educational contexts, and consequently this workforce should be viewed as distinct from secondary teachers, partly because of their specific training needs.
The concept of pattern has been given little attention in the early mathematics curriculum in England over the past 25 years despite it being key to mathematical learning, and a good predictor for later attainment. This paper makes the case for it being an essential and central tenet of early childhood mathematics education.
There is a growing evidence base for the importance of spatial reasoning for the development of mathematics. However, the extent to which this translates into practice is unknown. This paper found that whilst practitioners engage in a variety of activities that support spatial reasoning, most practitioners reported little confidence in their understanding of what spatial reasoning is.
Many commonplace practices, such as grouping, are based on ‘ability’. However, not much of the research accounts for the perspective of the child which, according to this paper, is highly individual and shaped by a broader range of social, structural and pedagogic aspects of classroom life than previously thought.
This paper considered how a university mathematics department sought to preserve and enhance student engagement when delivering their programmes online. Successful approaches included study-buddy and peer-mentoring schemes to reduce isolation and anxiety but asynchronous learning made it harder for students to manage their time.
This study looks at student-student interactions outside the classroom in the context of an undergraduate mathematics course. It uses social network analysis to understand who studies with whom, whether study habits are related to who you study with, and whether any of this predicts attainment.