No levels in schools

[treadwater]

If we're not having levels in schools anymore, what are we having to measure progress - does anyone know where can I read about new system in layman terms?

I too cannot see mixed ability working in maths. How would you pitch the lesson if some are ready to move on to solving quadratics and others do not remember what a square number is? It is not a subject where giving an opinion of the relevance of algebra will do. Either you learn it or you don't.

Namchsng, as a maths teacher, do you think flip learning may be a possible way to teach mixed ability maths?

As I said earlier it is entirely possible that maths is the exception. A number of maths teachers have told me that mixed-ability just wouldn't work for them.

I do know of more than one excellent comp where it works well in Sciences.

In the real world where there are teachers who are a bit pants I'm not sure if setting will make much odds. In their mixed ability classes the most and least able are likely to suffer the most... In a school which sets it is likely to be top or bottom set that gets fobbed off with them so again the most and least able suffer (although one ability group would be disproportionately affected in this case). It is a tough one and mixed ability teaching isn't always done right, I admit.

"I too cannot see mixed ability working in maths. How would you pitch the lesson if some are ready to move on to solving quadratics and others do not remember what a square number is? It is not a subject where giving an opinion of the relevance of algebra will do. Either you learn it or you don't."

A summer born child on a low ablity table in reception is often set on the path to medicore achievement at the age of four! They suffer from low expectations and no one bothers to challenge them.

Ironically lots of high achieving countries teach maths in mixed ablity classes. Singapore, Japan and Finland all supposely use mixed ablity classes. UK maths teachers say that mixed ablity teaching is impossible because they have never known any thing different to setting.

Sometimes the use of ablity tables in primary or sets or streaming can put a ceiling on children's learning. Even children in the top maths set can experience a ceiling on their learning. There is not enough educational research to look at the most effective ways of pushing every child to their limit.