Teaching Approaches to Promote Consistent ... - Learning Wales

phonics work and word banks is interpreted as indicating that co-ordinator’spreference for more creative aspects of writing.There was little cross-over between subjects in the subject co-co-ordinators’responses. However, one instance was notable: a numeracy co-ordinator identifiedmathematical vocabulary as a challenge for all, especially with older classes (schoolA, group En).By contrast with their literacy counterparts, numeracy co-ordinators were specific innaming aspects of the mathematics curriculum that posed challenges to teachers andto pupils:“For pupils…a constant need to watch the four rules of number…andfamiliarity with money and with time.”(almost identical words from numeracy coordinatorson schools D and E, group En)“..data handling and word problems 9 are hard (to teach)... and division.”(numeracy co-ordinator, school F, group En)“Pupils find the difference between parameter and area hard tograsp…(teachers) lack confidence about shape and space...”(numeracy co-ordinator, school I, group Ma)Finding 10: Subject co-ordinators were aware of their colleagues’ degrees ofconfidence as subject teachers and could relate this to their development needsand to ways forward for improving the quality of teaching in the subject.This finding was quite frequent and did not relate necessarily only to subjects whichwere achieving at national target levels. It could be found in either or both subjects inall schools in the study. This might indicate that subject co-ordination involvesadvanced leadership skills and is not necessarily immediately linked to visibleimprovements in pupil performance. Rather, a more complex set of relationships9 Word problems are mathematical problems expressed in words and sentences.’45