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Inspection report 2010
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Mathematics
Exam results
Below is a table of the Mathematics department’s most recent results.
| IGCSE (taken in Year 10) | A*-A 100% |
| IGCSE (taken in Year 11) | A*-A 91% |
| A level | A*-A 87% |
University entrants
For the past three years we have seen numbers of students studying Mathematics in the Sixth Form grow considerably. This year over 110 students are studying Mathematics in the Lower Sixth. A good many of these students go on to study science based degrees (Engineering or Physics), supported by a strong mathematical background. For the past three years we have also been pleased to see three or four students go on to study Mathematics at Oxford, Cambridge or Warwick.
Competitions
We enter pupils for all three major national mathematics challenges (each with a follow-on round). We also participate in three Team Maths competitions.
The three main competitions are individual papers run by the UKMT (UK Maths Trust) for Junior, Intermediate and Senior Level. The idea behind them is to produce fun, problem-solving puzzles, which will further spark pupils’ interest in mathematics and allow them to tackle questions beyond the confines of the more rigid examination syllabus.
Participants are given past papers and solutions to practice on, prior to the competition.
More information is available on the UKMT website:
http://www.mathcomp.leeds.ac.uk
A. UK JMC – normally held on the last Tuesday in April.
This is a one-hour multiple-choice paper, designed to be taken by all pupils in Year 7. We participated in this for the first time in 2002 and last year about 80% of pupils received a certificate. Some pupils may then be invited to participate in the Junior Mathematical Olympiad.
B. UK IMC – normally held on the first Thursday in February.
The UK Intermediate Mathematics Challenge is a one-hour multiple-choice paper, designed to be taken by pupils in Years 9 to 11. It is certainly very challenging for the most able and yet remains accessible to the whole year group, all of whom are entered. Usually about two-thirds of our pupils receive certificates. The top 500 pupils nationally in each eligible year group are invited to take part in additional Olympiads and in 2010 we had 12 pupils doing this.
C. UK SMC – normally held on the first Tuesday in November.
This is a 90-minute multiple-choice paper with 25 questions. The subject content of the first 20 questions is essentially GCSE and should be accessible to our very able Year 10 pupils. Following the results of the SMC, some 800 pupils nationwide are invited to take part in the British Mathematical Olympiad (Round 1), which is usually held on the first Wednesday in December. These pupils sit a 3½-hour paper with six tough questions. Pupils who do well on this paper (about 100 nationally) are then invited to take part in Round 2 of the BMO. This is a 3½-hour paper with four questions of a very challenging nature. Round 2 usually takes place on the last Tuesday in February. Successful pupils (about 20 nationally) are then invited to a training session – at Easter, at Trinity College Cambridge. Eight pupils are finally selected to represent the UK at the International Mathematical Olympiad during the summer. In 2009/10 seven of our pupils were invited to take part in Round 1 and one pupil progressed to Round 2.
D. Team Challenges
There are three Team Challenges in which we participate. The UKMT organises one competition for teams consisting of two Year 8 and two Year 9 pupils, and a senior competition for teams of four Sixth Formers, of which not more than two are in Year 13. In addition, the local Further Maths Network organises a competition for Year 10 pupils. The competitions are designed to encourage teamwork and cooperation, and can include a requirement for the team to do some preparatory study on a selected field outside the normal curriculum.
