Curriculum for Wales

Developing a vision

The Curriculum for Wales guidance aims to help each school develop its own curriculum, enabling their learners to develop towards the four purposes of the curriculum – the starting point and aspiration for every child and young person in Wales.

The Four Purposes

The four purposes should be the starting point and aspiration for schools’ curriculum design. Ultimately, the aim of a school’s curriculum is to support its learners to become:

ambitious, capable learners, ready to learn throughout their lives
enterprising, creative contributors, ready to play a full part in life and work
ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world
healthy, confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society.

Skills integral to the four purposes

The four purposes are also underpinned by integral skills which should be developed within a wide range of learning and teaching:

Creativity and innovation
Critical thinking and problem-solving
Personal effectiveness
Planning and organising

Cross-curricular skills

Literacy, numeracy and digital competence are mandatory skills across all areas of learning and experience and will need to be considered within all curriculum design:

develop listening, reading, speaking and writing skills
be able to use numbers and solve problems in real-life situations
be confident users of a range of technologies to help them function and communicate effectively and make sense of the world.

Mathematics and Numeracy

Connecting with the Curriculum for Wales

The Mathematics and Numeracy Introduction of the Curriculum for Wales starts with: ‘The development of mathematics has always gone hand in hand with the development of civilisation itself. A truly international discipline, it surrounds us and underpins so many aspects of our daily lives, such as architecture, art, music, money and engineering. And while it is creative and beautiful, both in its own right and in its applications, it is also essential for progress in other areas of learning and experience.’ Mathematics and Numeracy AoLE

MSPW was closely involved in the work of the Mathematics and Numeracy AoLE, with two of our team acting as expert advisors. We brought to this work the ideas that informed the writing of the MSPW Scheme of Work for the new A-level Specifications: ‘The fundamental philosophy we are following is to teach Mathematics rather than to ‘teach to the exam’. We believe that if a student grasps the mathematics then exam success will follow and that the student will be better prepared for further study & application through this approach. We wish to create the best SoW we can to teach mathematics which includes the specification without being bound by it or continually referencing formal assessment. We will build the initial SoW in such a way as to encourage continual development through trial & improvement.’

This philosophy permeates all of our work in Tuition, Professional Learning, Enrichment, Resource production and Research.

Supporting Mathematics Teachers in Wales

The MSPW provides advice, resources and professional learning to teachers to help enrich the mathematical experience of students and promote the continued study of mathematics. We also carry out action research in partnership with teachers. We are committed to supporting schools and colleges and have been delivering professional learning since 2014. We have supported hundreds of teachers from schools/colleges across Wales. Whilst our PL focusses mainly (though not exclusively) on KS5 in terms of content, all courses also aim to develop effective pedagogy and supports the Curriculum for Wales in this.

Registration

The MSPW has developed an extensive range of resources that we are very happy to share with teachers. Registration also gives free single user teacher access to the Integral Further Maths resources (Integral). The resources include materials to support the teaching and learning of A Level Mathematics and Further Mathematics, most topics in the Additional Mathematics Level 2 certificate and STEP examinations.

Registration also gives access to our range of free training opportunities including one-day workshops, on-line sessions, topic/module specific sessions, in-school options as well as longer courses. Professional Learning opportunities are here.

To access the above, please Register here