Ofsted Outstanding

Year 12 Mathematics

Guidance for parents

What will students be studying in Maths this year?

In Year 12 students will do the first year of the  OCR MEI A Level Maths or finish with AS at the end of the year which comprises of three papers in Pure, Statistics and Mechanics. Further students will have the same choice and their papers also include some Decision maths. All exams will be sat in the summer. There is no coursework.

What do we expect of the students in the classroom?

The students should turn up to every maths lesson with the correct equipment and any work that is due. They should pay close attention in class and ask if they do not understand any part of the lesson. If they still don’t get it at the end they should tell the teacher who may see them at lunchtime to clarify any outstanding issues. When the class is going through homework they should ask about any questions they do not understand, and make a correction on their scripts, not just a number but also a method so that they can remember how to do it when revising.

What homework are they set?

Students will be set two approximately ninty minute homeworks each week, one from each teacher. Students should start to attempt each of these soon after they are set (and not the night before the deadline) so that if they cannot understand a large part of them they have time to come to see their teacher to ask questions before the work is due. After finishing them they should mark them off from the answers in the books so that they know exactly which questions to ask in class.

What are the major assessments this year?

Each six to eight weeks students will complete a test on the topics they have just covered. They should revise for these thoroughly by trying questions and asking about any they cannot do in class. In the Year 12 mocks, after a period of revision, students will answer questions from past papers on the material they have covered by that date. There are final full mock papers in March. After that the students should work systematically through the past papers, ideally doing at least one paper for each module per week.

What should my son/daughter do if she feels he/she is struggling in the subject?

In the first instance, she should speak to her subject teacher. They will arrange an opportunity to go through the relevant areas, if necessary at lunchtime. She should try to identify specific questions which she is finding a challenge so that they can offer targeted support. There are also weekly turn up with your questions help sessions. In some cases they may arrange a Y13 student mentor to help.

How can I support my son/daughter in Year 12?

Please do not worry if you do not understand the topics, you do not have to! The best way to provide general support to Year 12 students is by talking to them about their work in the subject and how things are going. We will notify you if she/he repeatedly fails to hand in work assignments each term, in which case please talk about a timetable to get them back up to date. We will also tell you if mock results suggest they are not performing to their full potential. Please encourage her/him to talk to their teacher about any topics they do not understand, or to bring along any problems to the regular lunchtime help sessions in M01. During study leave there will be additional individual help for three lessons each day.

What kind of independent work should my son/daughter be completing?

Students should be completing the regular homework assignments to progress in the subject. If they are stuck on a topic at home we ask that in September they pay the small amount to subscribe to the MEI website which provides excellent support and will take you through any topic with a tutorial and give you questions to practice. There are more resources outlined on the Moodle site. If these do not help please ask your daughter/son to see her teacher. We enter students routinely for the national maths challenges, and there are opportunities to get help with these beforehand and try past papers.

Who can I contact for further advice and information?

Please feel free to contact your current maths teacher at first instance via maths@newsteadwood.co.uk .

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