Learned societies at the centre
Levelling Up: Maths is a sustained access and enrichment programme, created by the London Mathematical Society (LMS), for students from underrepresented backgrounds studying A-level Maths. The goal is to help these students achieve a place, and succeed, at university in preparation for a career in STEM. Following the successful pilot year in 2022, the scheme is being delivered with universities across the UK.
Sustained ‘near peer’ tutoring
Levelling Up: Maths is a collection of twenty-six modules delivered by ‘near peers’ (second or third year Maths undergraduates) to school students from underrepresented backgrounds. Typically, this involves an undergraduate from a local university, ideally of a similar background, delivering the programme either online and/or in-person to a tutorial group of five students. Usually, the modules are delivered after the school day, starting in April of Year12 and concluding in May of Year 13. The programme consists of intertwined academic enrichment and pastoral elements. Our goal is as much about increasing social (and mathematical) capital as it is about improving attainment. In preparation for their career in STEM, our universities invite alumni of the programme to be part of a continuing support network. Moreover, even at this early stage, we anticipate that successful students will go on to be tutors themselves, making the programme more sustainable and putting the student journey at its heart.
Innovation and evaluation
Participating universities are charged with identifying both the tutors and the students to take part in the programme. Each university defines underrepresentation for their particular circumstance in line (in England) with their Access and Participation Plan (APP) and (typically) their Maths departments are responsible for the delivery of the programme.
In addition to inspiring, and improving the confidence of, the school students, Levelling Up: Maths also provides a valuable professional development opportunity for the undergraduate tutors.
From January 2025, the Levelling Up: Maths programme will be administered by the IMA, with the LMS as a stakeholder. The IMA’s role is to bring together the participating universities as a community, and to help new universities to understand how to deliver the programme. They also carefully monitor the academic material providing updates as necessary ensuring the programme remains of high quality.
Levelling Up: Maths for Engineering
The IMA are collaborating with the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) on a new strand of Levelling Up: STEM that is aimed at enhancing engineering education and broadening participation, with three goals:
- To raise awareness of engineering as a fantastic, STEM-based career;
- To raise the maths capabilities of those interested in engineering;
- To help students appreciate the relevance of maths in practical engineering situations.
Maths skills are an essential capability for engineers, as such the IMA is working with leading UK academics to develop an ‘engineering-flavoured’ A-level maths syllabus, contextualising topics like trigonometry and differentiation to practical topics like designing robot arms or a rollercoaster.
The engineering programme is enrolling universities in Autumn 2024 for tutorials launching in Spring 2025.
Boosting Maths recruitment at lower tariff institutions
The IMA is pleased to announce a new programme aimed at boosting Maths recruitment, from underrepresented groups, at lower tariff universities. It is available to all Maths departments in England, Wales and Northern Ireland whose A level Maths entry requirement is a grade B or lower.
Find out more about the new programme.
Levelling Up: Case Studies
Between July and September 2024, The London Mathematical Society commissioned the Observatory for Mathematical Education to produce a number of case studies to highlight the impact and benefit of the Levelling Up: Maths scheme to participants with different roles. Content from these studies is now available to download.
The IMA, LMS and the Observatory would like to thank and acknowledge the volunteers who took part in the interviews and the university staff who helped to coordinate the interviews.
For more information about both of these programmes, please contact the Levelling Up team levellingup@ima.org.uk