Worksop Priory Academy, Nottinghamshire
About the School
Worksop Priory Academy has a long history of education supported by its local church, with a majority of governors being members of the Priory Church congregation. Ofsted consider the school to place a very strong emphasis on the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development with outstanding results.
The Challenge
Head teacher, Phil Abbott shared the reasons why his school chose to adopt Big Maths: “Following changes to the national curriculum in 2014, putting an increased focus on mental calculation and reasoning, the school felt that subscribing to Big Maths would provide teachers with quality content to allow children to access all of the elements within the new curriculum.
“With a large turnover of staff leading to the appointment of several NQTs, the school felt that having a common approach to the planning and teaching of maths would benefit teachers, pupils and senior leaders.”
Favourite Features of Big Maths
“Big Maths provides clear progression and is resourced effectively to facilitate high quality teaching. Assessment through the weekly challenges is straight forward and reporting is very easy to present to pupils, partners, senior leaders and governors.”
What Do The Children Think?
“Many children talk enthusiastically about their challenges and nearly all children are able to articulate their current level and next steps as a result.”
The Effect On Teachers
“On average, teachers report that the Big Maths website saves about two hours a week, which is down to the readily available resources and lesson planning area. Teachers have also said that the assessment system is clear, simple and effective and that the tracking makes it easy to identify any children who might need some extra support.”
The Results!
In 2016/17, no fewer than 93% of children in each cohort made chronological or better progress. Every cohort in school performed above the national average score for arithmetic. 90% of children in KS2 achieved the national standard or better for maths and 15% achieved above the national average. With an average scaled score of 105, Worksop Priory was also one point above the national average for the first time in 2017.
Find out how to sign up to Big Maths…
Big Maths is the way forward when it comes to teaching mathematics in your school. Contact us now to arrange a call to discuss how to move forward with the best implementation for you. Take the first step towards changing the way you teach maths. It’s time to rip up the rulebook and teach different.