This project report contains key recommendations on how to improve the quality of mathematics education in England’s Further Education colleges.
The project was delivered by the Nuffield Foundation and the University of Nottingham, and ran from September 2017 to October 2020. The report contains 20 recommendations, including the following:
- A national recruitment campaign to attract career-changers from diverse backgrounds should be designed and launched with some urgency.
- Initial training requirements for teaching mathematics in FE should be reviewed and a national training strategy developed that distinguishes between the needs of teachers who are undergoing 1) a significant career change, 2) a change of curriculum focus, and 3) a change of educational context (e.g. from school to FE).
- Designated funding should be ring-fenced for the professional development of mathematics teachers in FE colleges.
- Research on approaches to the ‘embedding’ of mathematics into vocational learning and the impact of different practices needs to be commissioned.
You can find out more read the report in full here
