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A thinking skills approach to learning maths (CAME)

A thinking skills approach to learning maths (CAME). Schools implementing cognitive skills in maths saw:. over half participating classes achieve larger than expected maths achievement from year 7 to year 8

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A thinking skills approach to learning maths (CAME)

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  1. A thinking skills approach to learning maths (CAME)

  2. Schools implementing cognitive skills in maths saw: over half participating classes achieve larger than expected maths achievement from year 7 to year 8 significantly higher GCSE pass rates in maths than in control schools (0.8 of a GCSE grade higher)

  3. The impact of setting on student outcomes • Students in low ability sets gained little from CAME lessons despite being taught by experienced CAME teachers • A CAME school with mixed ability classes reported gains for students of all abilities • Researchers believed the reason was that higher-ability students provide a range of insights that helped lower-attaining students extend their thinking

  4. Evidence of thinking skills developed in maths transferring to other subjects • CAME students achieved value-added gains of 0.30 of a grade in science and 0.32 of a grade in English • this may be evidence for transfer of thinking skills from maths to other subjects

  5. The Cognitive acceleration in mathematics education (CAME) project • The CAME project: • is based on research and theory about students’ thinking • aims to boost mathematical thinking of students aged 11 to 14 years and raise their attainment in standard tests

  6. The key ideas behind CAME are that: • through collaboration children who are further on in their understanding of a problem can help move other students forward too (from Vygotsky) • the teacher’s role is to prompt students’ thinking with questions (mediation) • all adolescents have the potential to achieve in mathematics

  7. The key stages of a CAME lesson • CAME mathematics lessons follow a structure of: • concrete preparation • collaborative learning • whole-class discussion

  8. Concrete preparation • In the opening phase the teacher: - introduces the task to the whole group - asks students to explain to each other what they think the task is about

  9. Collaborative learning Students work in pairs or small groups on tasks which challenge students’ existing ideas Students make notes from discussion for feedback later The teacher moves around the class observing interaction and prompting with questions when discussion falters

  10. Whole-class discussion The session closes with a whole class discussion in which the teacher: asks groups to report their ideas encourages students to reflect on their reasoning using probing questions draws pupils’ attention to key ideas and vocabulary encourages others to ask questions

  11. The tasks students tackle in a CAME session In the ‘twigs and leaves’ task students describe the pattern relating to the numbers of leaves on some twigs The teacher then asks students to express the pattern in a word equation e.g: The total number of leaves = number of twigs times 3 plus 2 leaves at the trunk Students then replace the words by letter symbols, in this case: L = (3 x t) + 2

  12. Who were the children in the study? • The intervention involved 78 classes of 11-12 year olds in 12 project schools • Project students received 30 CAME lessons (called Thinking Mathematics) over two years

  13. How was the information gathered? Findings are based on: tests of mathematics understanding at the start of Year 7 and end of Year 8 GCSE results in mathematics, English and science three years later

  14. How might teachers use this evidence? • Group discussion was a key element in developing students’ thinking skills, and the teacher played an active role in ensuring this happened effectively • In what ways could you support your students to listen to each other’s ideas more effectively, and reach a decision together? Could you weave in opportunities to model effective dialogue for them?

  15. How might leaders use this evidence? • The CAME approach used a quite specific pattern of delivery – preparation, collaborative task, whole class discussion • How flexible and open to new approaches are teachers in your school? If you were to introduce a new approach like CAME which department or team of teachers is best placed to develop the practice? What scope is there for coaching partnerships to extend the practice?

  16. Find out more • Study reference: Shayer, M and Adhami, M (2007) Fostering cognitive development through the context of mathematics: Results of the CAME projectin Educational Studies in Mathematics (2007) Vol. 64, pp. 265-291 • You might like to read a summary of the work of Vygotsky on the GTC website: http://www.gtce.org.uk/research/romtopics/rom_teachingandlearning/vygotsky_dec03/

  17. Feedback • Did you find this useful? • What did you like? • What didn’t you like? Any feedback on this Research Bite would be much appreciated. Please email your feedback to: research.summaries@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk

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