IMA Position Statement on Subject Specialism Teaching in Mathematics
Why specialist teachers?
As explored in the Royal Society’s State of the Nation Report (2007)[2] there is no standard definition of Subject Specialist teachers. Recent Ofsted reports[3] have highlighted how teacher subject knowledge and understanding contribute positively to teaching and learning at both primary and secondary level. Having a clear definition should make it easier for government to quantify the number of specialist teachers of mathematics and set appropriate targets for recruitment and retention. In addition, a clear definition of Subject Specialist should assist in establishing clear and unambiguous criteria for Chartered Mathematics Teacher status. Please note that this document refers to teachers of mathematics in England. Scotland has its own rules for subject specialist teachers which are implemented by its GTC (www.gtcs.org.uk).Secondary Teachers of Mathematics
‘SCORE makes a clear distinction between subject specialism and teaching expertise and uses ‘specialism’ to refer to the subject knowledge gained by a teacher through their degree and/or employment outside of teaching (i.e. industry).’ (2011: para. 12) It suggests that ‘to be considered a Subject Specialist for the purpose of data collection, the qualified teacher will have gained at least one of the following: a relevant degree; sufficient experience in the subject through employment; or a qualification from a 24-week (minimum) Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) course’ (2011: para. 17) In England, part-time SKE courses for experienced non-specialist teachers also enable teachers to become specialist teachers. A relevant degree is usually one that includes at least 50% mathematics (i.e. 180 credits). On the DfE website[4] it lists the following undergraduate course code stems as likely to be suitable:- G100 Mathematics
- G200 Operational research
- G300 Statistics
- G900 Others in mathematical and computing sciences.
Primary Teachers of Mathematics
Almost all primary teachers are teachers of mathematics. Very few have qualifications in mathematics beyond GCSE grade C, although most will have studied mathematics subject knowledge for teaching during their initial teacher education (ITE) programme. Following the Williams’ review of primary mathematics education[5] the government introduced the MaST (mathematics specialist teacher) programme in response to recommendation 3:There should be at least one Mathematics Specialist in each primary school, in post within 10 years, with deep mathematical subject and pedagogical knowledge, making appropriate arrangements for small and rural schools. Implementation should commence in 2009 and be targeted initially to maximise impact on standards and to narrow attainment gaps.
This funded Masters level professional development programme for experienced primary teachers enabled them to become the specialists envisioned. Primary teachers who complete the MaST programme are specialist teachers at primary as they have developed their knowledge and understanding of mathematics alongside developing subject pedagogy, leadership and management. Recently ITE courses that allow a primary teacher to specialise in mathematics from the outset have been introduced in England. Minimum entry requirements include an A level in mathematics. The take-up by both providers and prospective teachers has been modest. Graduates of these courses should be considered specialist teachers of mathematics. March 2015
