Gardiner wants Maths Initiative extended to Northern Ireland
Sam Gardiner MLA, Ulster Unionist Assembly Member for Upper Bann, wants a campaign to make Maths “cool” for the 11-14 age group introduced in Northern Ireland.
“In England, the Education Secretary is spending £4 million on a campaign to make Maths ‘cool’ for schoolchildren aged 11-14. That is the age when apparently, interest in Maths tails off and this lead on to fare fewer pupils studying Maths later, which damages the skills base of our workforce. I want to see this new initiative extended to Northern Ireland.”
“I believe the issue of the skills of our workforce is even more pressing in Northern Ireland that it is in the rest of the UK. We may have some of the highest achievers at one end of the education spectrum but we also have more people leaving school without formal qualifications at the other end of the spectrum than is the case in most other parts of the United Kingdom.”
“Nationally, less than 15 per cent of those who take Maths at GCSE go on to take an A-level in it. Of that 15 per cent, only about 10 per cent then go on to study it at university. Only half of teenagers get a minimum grade C in the subject at GCSE level. That needs to be addressed because Maths is the basis for a lot of scientific work.”
“Under this initiative, lessons will be based on solving problems which appeal to pupils. Pupils could be asked to consider how many flats will have to be built in the Olympic village to cater for all the athletes taking part in the Games in 2012. There could be questions from the world of fashion - with youngsters being asked to design a dress and then estimate how many yards of material will be necessary to produce it for, say, 100 girls. The key thing will be making Maths relevant and meaningful to pupils, instead of it being perceived as a dry and difficult subject.”