Senior High Mathematics in Nova Scotia Schools

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Senior High Mathematicsin Nova Scotia Schools
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Adopting the WNCP mathematics curriculum - Why?

• Research over the last 10 years on
• how students learn mathematics
• what topics are appropriate for students at a
  particular age
• 21st century expectations for learning, work and
  life
• Teacher and student feedback
• developmentally appropriate
• focus on fewer topics
• more time to teach and learn
• Parent feedback students need to learn
  important topics to prepare them for life, future
  studies, and work

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Implementation Schedule
Grade Implementation Schedule
P3 September 2013
46 September 2014
79 September 2015
10 September 2013
11 September 2014
12 September 2015

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Implementation Schedule for High School
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Implementation for Grades 10-12

• For the 20132014 school year, only new grade 10
  mathematics courses will be implemented. There
  will be no changes to grade 11 and grade 12
  mathematics courses currently being offered.
• For the 20142015 school year, only new
  mathematics grade 11 courses will be implemented.
  There will be no changes to the grade 12
  mathematics courses currently being offered.
• For the 2015-2016 school year, only new grade 12
  mathematics courses will be implemented.

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Senior High Mathematics Common Pathways

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Information about these Pathways

• The three grade 10 pathways should have the same
  rigour- different mathematics. (High expectations
  for all students!)
• The content, understanding, and skills vary among
  the pathways.
• After completion of Mathematics 11, students have
  the choice of an academic or Pre-Calculus
  pathway.
• Each pathway prepares students for different
  options after high school.

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Considerations for these Pathways

• When choosing a pathway, students should consider
  their mathematical knowledge and background,
  interests, and future education and career
  paths.
• Post-secondary programs of study have different
  mathematics prerequisites and admission
  requirements. Students and their parents should
  carefully investigate these prerequisites and
  requirements when selecting senior high courses.

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Senior High Mathematics Common Pathways

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Mathematics Essentials Pathway

• Mathematics Essentials courses are designed to
  provide students with the development of the
  skills and understandings required in the
  workplace, as well as those required for everyday
  life at home and in the community.
• Students will become better equipped to deal with
  mathematics in the real world and will become
  more confident in their mathematical abilities.

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Mathematics Essentials Pathway

• The typical pathway for students who successfully
  complete Mathematics Essentials 10 is Mathematics
  Essentials 11 followed by Mathematics for the
  Workplace 12.

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Senior High Mathematics Common Pathways

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Mathematics at Work Pathway

• This pathway consists of three newly designed
  courses and replaces the Mathematics Foundations
  Pathway
• These new courses are designed to provide
  students with the mathematical understandings and
  critical-thinking skills identified for direct
  entry into the work force or for entry into
  programs of study that do not require academic
  mathematics.

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Mathematics at Work Pathway

• The typical pathway for students who successfully
  complete Mathematics at Work 10 is Mathematics at
  Work 11 followed by Mathematics at Work 12.

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Senior High Mathematics Common Pathways

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Mathematics Pathway

• Courses in this pathway are designed to provide
  students with the mathematical understandings and
  critical-thinking skills identified for
  post-secondary studies in programs that require
  an academic mathematics credit but do not require
  the study of theoretical calculus.

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Mathematics Pathway

• Students who complete Mathematics 10 typically
  may
• complete Mathematics 11 followed by Mathematics
  12, if they intend to follow the academic
  pathway. It will no longer be possible to take
  these courses out of sequence or concurrently.
• complete Mathematics 11, followed by Pre-Calculus
  11, followed by Pre-Calculus 12, if they intend
  to follow the advanced pathway. It will no longer
  be possible to take these courses out of sequence
  or concurrently.

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Senior High Mathematics Common Pathways

• Insert diagram

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Pre-Calculus Pathway

• Courses in this pathway are designed to provide
  students with the mathematical understandings and
  critical-thinking skills identified for
  post-secondary studies in programs that require
  the study of theoretical calculus.
• Students who follow this advanced mathematics
  pathway will be required to complete the 220-hour
  Mathematics 10 course in their grade 10 year and
  both Mathematics 11 and Pre-Calculus 11 in their
  grade 11 year.
• Students will explore the following topics
• algebra and number, measurement, relations and
  functions, combinatorics, and introductory
  calculus.

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Pre-Calculus Pathway
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Mathematics Course Options Grade 10

• Mathematics Essentials 10
• Mathematics at Work 10
• Mathematics 10

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Financial Mathematics for all Grade 10 Students

• Starting in September 2013, all students entering
  Grade 10 will study areas of Financial
  Mathematics such as
• working hours and wages
• personal budget
• deductions, expenses
• taxes
• owning and operating a vehicle
• credit card charges
• Actual topics depend on course selection

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Mathematics Essentials 10

• Mathematics Essentials 10 is
• a 110 hour, graduation, 1 credit course
• designed for students who do not intend to pursue
  post-secondary study or who plan to enter
  programs that do not have any mathematics
  pre-requisites.
• There will be no provincial assessment for
  Mathematics Essentials 10.

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Mathematics Essentials 10

• Mathematics Essentials 10 is designed to provide
  students with the development of the skills and
  understandings required in the workplace, as well
  as those required for everyday life at home and
  in the community.
• Students will become better equipped to deal with
  mathematics in the real world and will become
  more confident in their mathematical
  understandings.
• Students will explore the following topics
• mental math, working and earning, deductions and
  expenses, paying taxes, making purchases, buying
  decisions, probability, measuring and estimating,
  transformation and design, and buying a car.

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Mathematics at Work 10

• Mathematics at Work 10 is
• a 110 hour, graduation, 1 credit course
• a high school mathematics course which
  demonstrates the application and importance of
  key math skills.
• There will be a provincial assessment for
  Mathematics at Work 10. It will be written in
  January and June of each school year.

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Mathematics at Work 10

• Mathematics at Work 10 is a new course designed
  to provide students with the mathematical
  understandings and critical-thinking skills
  identified for direct entry into the work force
  or for entry into programs of study that do not
  require academic mathematics.
• Students will explore the following topics
• measurement, area, Pythagorean theorem, right
  triangle trigonometry, geometry, unit pricing and
  currency exchange, income, and basic algebra.

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Mathematics 10

• Mathematics 10 is
• a 220-hour, academic, 2-credit course. This will
  mean that students will have mathematics class
  every day for their grade 10 year.
• two Grade 10 credits awarded
• 1 academic mathematics credit
• 1 of the two additional credits in science,
  mathematics and/or technology
• an academic high school mathematics course which
  is a pre-requisite
  for all other academic and advanced mathematics
  courses.
• There will be a provincial assessment for
  Mathematics 10. It will be written in June of
  each school year by students in Mathematics 10
  and Mathematics Pre-IB 10.

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Mathematics 10

• Students taking Mathematics 10 will have
  demonstrated satisfactory achievement of learning
  outcomes in grade 9 mathematics.
• Mathematics 10 is designed to provide students
  with an initial course in the pathway to develop
  mathematical understandings and critical-thinking
  skills identified for post-secondary studies in
  programs that require an academic or Pre-Calculus
  mathematics credit.
• Students will explore the following topics
• measurement systems, surface area and volume,
  right triangle trigonometry, exponents and
  radicals, polynomials, linear relations and
  functions, linear equations and graphs, solving
  systems of equations, and financial mathematics.

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Selecting the Best Course

• Considerations
• Mathematical knowledge and background
• Future plans
• Interest
• Learner profile
• Previous mathematics achievement
• It is in the students best interests to select
  courses in which they are able to be
  appropriately challenged and are likely to
  experience success.

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Support for High School Course Selection

• Your son or daughters grade 9 mathematics
  teacher has information which can support your
  child in selecting the most appropriate course
  for their success.

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Graduation Requirements

• Students entering Grade 10 in September 2013 will
  need two mathematics credits to graduate, only
  one of which may be a grade 10 credit.

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What are the IB and AP options in high school
mathematics?

• The IB and AP course options will continue to be
  offered at some sites.

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• Questions