‘Everyone seems to be agreeing at the minute that face-to-face is the way forward’: practitioners’ perspectives on post-pandemic mathematics and statistics support

Mathematics and statistics support (MSS) is now firmly embedded in the learning and teaching infra-structure of most UK universities and in many universities worldwide. In common with other higher education activities, in response to restrictions put in place to reduce the spread of Covid-19, MSS transitioned rapidly to online delivery in spring 2020. This paper reports on thinking within the practitioner community about good practice in the delivery of online MSS. A two-phase approach was used to collect this shared wisdom: an initial questionnaire in May 2020 (just after provision had moved online) and interviews with practitioners in January/February 2021 after colleagues had some experience in online provision and had had the opportunity to reflect on and modify the measures hastily put in place in spring 2020. The focus of the study is not only on what is currently being provided but also on what MSS will look like once all pandemic related restrictions have been ended. The overall feeling of the participants is that face-to-face MSS will return as the dominant form of delivery but that the benefits of online provision are such that a significant minority of provision will remain in this form.

Post-16 Further Mathematics blended learning: learner self-regulation, mathematical resilience and technology

This paper reports on a study set in Wales where the Further Mathematics Support Programme Wales supports the provision of an advanced qualification in mathematics for 16- to 18-year-old students with courses delivered in reduced teaching time. The study aimed to understand how the students experienced the Further Mathematics (FM) courses which are delivered either face-to-face or online and, more generally, to negotiate a place of alternative forms of delivery in post-16 mathematics curriculum. Sixteen students, eight of whom studied through the online course, were interviewed; overall, although they found the course challenging both in terms of the content and relatively limited teaching time, they enjoyed it and appeared to perceive benefits from taking the course. Most volunteered ‘tips’ about coping with the challenges of the course and the tips can be seen as strategies of self-regulation. Self-regulation strategies were reported more strongly by the students taking the course online than those attending face-to-face classes. In view of the evidence of technology creating new learning environments perceived as advantageous by students, it is hypothesized that introducing blended learning as part of post-16 mathematics curriculum could be beneficial. Improving learner self-regulation is discussed as means of improving access to FM. Other findings included the importance of support from peers, parents and schools and gender differences.

On the classic paradox of infinity and a related function

In this study we consider a classic paradox of infinity and its variations and suggest how the sources of misleading intuition can be analysed using the concept of uniform convergence of functions. We then examine how six mathematics honour students engage with a variation of the paradox. Despite their advanced mathematical training, the participants experienced considerable difficulty in addressing the presented paradoxical situation. Drawing on data from written responses and individual interviews, we describe the students’ approaches in an attempt to reconcile their intuitive perceptions with their mathematical computations.