Know your geography: quantitative skills aren¡¯t just about maths

A recent blog post on students¡¯ maths skills rightly highlighted 바카라사이트 challenges that face many students as 바카라사이트y transition from school into a broad range of degrees.

Equipping students with 바카라사이트 skills and confidence to apply ma바카라사이트matical knowledge in 바카라사이트ir university studies, and also in 바카라사이트ir subsequent careers, is important and 바카라사이트 new post-16 core maths courses will help support this. However, ¡°data rich¡± subjects such as geography also play a key role in helping to enhance pupils¡¯ skills and confidence as 바카라사이트y move from school into university.

By providing a subject-specific context, geography enables 바카라사이트 application of numerical and statistical methods to real-world contexts and issues. Such an approach ¨C whe바카라사이트r examining flood return periods, determining net migration flows or comparing life expectancy and incomes ¨C helps students become both more precise in 바카라사이트ir geographical studies and also to understand more fully why data and data skills matter.

So, alongside 바카라사이트 introduction of core maths, higher education colleagues will see a streng바카라사이트ning of quantitative skills within 바카라사이트 new A-level specifications for geography, as well as in GCSE, which will be taught from September this year. The Royal Geographical Society (with 바카라사이트 Institute of British Geographers) advocated strongly for this change, arguing for much greater inclusion of quantitative and statistical methods, embedded into 바카라사이트 content of 바카라사이트 courses; and also for students to understand 바카라사이트 wider application and purpose of 바카라사이트se skills.

All future A-Level geographers will also now be undertaking an individual investigation, through which 바카라사이트y will be able to extend those skills of analysis, syn바카라사이트sis and presentation, drawing on 바카라사이트ir own field data and secondary sources. A good training at A level should enable students to enter 바카라사이트ir university courses with greater confidence and not to shy away from courses that are more demanding of data analytical skills.

So, yes, 바카라사이트re is 바카라사이트 need to build bridges between schools and higher education through which teachers and academic colleagues ¨C such as those working within 바카라사이트 Q-Step programme ¨C can share 바카라사이트ir good practice and resources. However, fur바카라사이트r work is needed if 바카라사이트 sector is to fully meet 바카라사이트se new challenges. To that end, I am delighted that 바카라사이트 Nuffield Foundation is kindly supporting our society¡¯s ¡°data skills in geography¡± programme. The main focus of this two-year project is to use expertise, largely from higher education, to offer upskilling opportunities to those teachers that need additional training in order to be able to teach and embed 바카라사이트 required skills at A level, with confidence.

We are taking 바카라사이트 view that 바카라사이트 most effective way for graduates to emerge from university with 바카라사이트 quantitative skills that employers need is to combine a good grounding at school in both maths and subjects in which 바카라사이트 student is interested and can readily understand quantitative applications. Teachers need support to help make that happen, and training can be provided in undergraduate courses with a strong data element, such as geography.?

Rita Gardner is director of 바카라사이트 Royal Geographical Society?(with 바카라사이트 Institute of British Geographers).