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Total Maths Newsletter

Hello Colleague

Happy New Year, we hope you’re keeping warm and all is well in your classroom. 😊

Congratulations to all students that have just received GCSE (9-1) Maths results in the November 2024 series. Please see below for links to materials and an update to mark schemes.

If you’d like to become part of our assessor team, we’re currently recruiting a Principal Examiner for AS Maths B (MEI) H630/02: Pure Mathematics and Statistics. More information and details of how to apply are available from our Assessment Specialists Recruitment site (the deadline is Sunday 26 January). Additionally, we’re also recruiting Examiners for AS / A Level Further Maths B (MEI) to mark papers this summer.

Our summer 2024 question papers are now available for you in ExamBuilder. You can use ExamBuilder to create mock exams for students, topic tests, homeworks and more, plus it’s completely free to use.

As always, if you have any queries or we can give you any further support, please get in contact with us. Our role is to support you as you deliver our qualifications.

Neil, Caroline, Amy, Steven and Ruth - your OCR Maths Subject Advisors 

maths@ocr.org.uk
@OCR_Maths
01223 553998
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GCSE (9-1) Maths - November 2024 series
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Congratulations and well done to all students who received results earlier this month from the November 2024 series.

Question papers, final mark schemes, analysis grids and examiners' reports are all available to download from Teach Cambridge.

In early December last year, we published draft versions of the mark schemes for those of you using the papers as mock assessments and wishing to make an early start in marking them. If you did download the draft versions, please do make sure you download the final mark schemes now.

Please ensure that all of these materials are kept secure so that others can use the papers as mocks through the upcoming year.

Please see our website for November 2024 grade boundaries and provisional exam statistics.

Teach Cambridge
Making our GCSE (9-1) Maths mark schemes clearer

Following feedback from teachers, we’ve amended the marking instructions in our GCSE (9-1) Maths (J560) mark schemes. The amended marking instructions now make it clearer that correct methods not included in the mark scheme will still be appropriately credited and receive equivalent marks.

These methods include visual representations commonly used by centres following a teaching for mastery approach, such as bar models, ratio tables and other alternative representations.
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We hope this clarification reassures you that these methods are appropriately credited. You can continue to teach them if you wish to and students can respond with them in exams.

There is no change in the approach to marking. Students have always been credited for using correct methods including those not seen in the mark scheme and this amendment is just intended to make that clearer.

You’ll see this amendment in the GCSE (9-1) Maths mark schemes from the November 2024 series onwards. Please see our subject update for more information.

You can download the November 2024 question papers and mark schemes now from Teach Cambridge.

Teach Cambridge
GCSE (9-1) Maths focus group on content
Students in a maths lesson

Next month we’re running a focus group to gain insights into the current content for GCSE (9-1) Maths and we’d like to invite you to join us.

We'd love to hear your opinions on which topics of the curriculum you’d like to change, along with what the impacts of those changes may be.

The focus group will be held online via Teams on Thursday 13 February, 16:00-17:00. As a thank you for your time, we will offer you a £20 e-voucher.

If you're interested in being involved, please email math.development@ocr.org.uk with the subject line ‘GCSE focus group’.
Professional development for 2025

Below you’ll find dates of our professional development courses coming up in the first half of this term. Head over to our maths professional development webpage for more information and to book your place now.

  • Tuesday 21 January – Starting to Teach OCR GCSE (9-1) Maths
  • Wednesday 5 February - Enhance your Teaching: Exploring problem-solving in GCSE (9-1) Maths.
teachers talking

Materials from past courses are available to you to download from Teach Cambridge. Select your qualification, then in the menu go to ‘Training’, then ‘Past training events’.

Maths professional development
Upcoming maths Teacher Networks
teachers in a network

We have several Teacher Networks coming up this term. These are completely free to attend and are set up to bring maths teachers together, so we can share relevant updates, answer your questions, discuss best practice and more.

You can book your place now.
  • Wednesday 29 January – A Level Maths & Further Maths (online) – We’ll look at exam command words and discuss using mark schemes, examiners’ reports and candidate exemplars with students.
  • Thursday 6 February – GCSE (9-1) Maths (face to face at Oulton Academy, Yorkshire) – We’ll focus on tiering decisions, content differences across tiers and resources to assist you with tiering.
  • Thursday 6 March – Level 3 FSMQ: Additional Mathematics (online) – We’ll give an overview of the 2025 exam structure and discuss revision activities.
  • Wednesday 12 March – A Level Maths & Further Maths (online) – We’ll share revision activities and discuss applying mark schemes to alternative solution methods.

Whether you’re already teaching a qualification or just interested in learning more, you’re very welcome to attend. We look forward to seeing you there. 😊

Maths Teacher Networks
Our latest blogs

Steven and Amy’s series of blogs on A Level Command Words continues with a look at ‘Explain’.

As with the other blogs in the series, this includes numerous examples of past questions, as well as hints, tips and feedback from Principal Examiners.
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Steven has also updated his blogs ‘A Level Maths: what practice material is available?’ and ‘Level 3 FSMQ: Additional Mathematics – formulae sheets and support for the summer exam’ to include the very latest information and updates.

Finally, our latest guest blog is from maths teacher Betty King, in which she talks about her experiences starting to teach A Level Maths. If you're new to teaching A Level Maths or mentoring a colleague new to A Level, it's a great blog to help prepare.

Maths blogs
Core Maths support
Student in a classroom

We’ve just published our first Section Check In test for Core Maths. It covers ‘Modelling’, one of the common topics assessed on both our Core Maths qualifications.

It can be downloaded from Teach Cambridge, under ‘Teaching’ and then ‘Progress checking’, for both Core Maths A and Core Maths B.

Additionally, AMSP are running an online OCR Core Maths network on Thursday 6 February 16:00-17:30. Head over to their website to book your place.

Teach Cambridge

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