‘Hard to focus, difficult to learn’: Covid19 Impacts on teaching, learning and progression for A Levels in Mathematics

We explore year 13 (age 17-18) student accounts of how Covid19 has impacted their learning for pre-university mathematics qualifications in England. Findings derive from the final year of a four-year study (2017/18 to 2020/21) exploring enactment and impact of reformed mathematics ‘A Levels’, and efficacy of associated Pearson resources and assessments. Research tools were adapted to focus on impacts of Covid19. In this cohort’s first year of A level (2019/20), teaching and learning was severely disrupted. Teachers anticipated significant, wide-ranging learning gaps as students progressed to year 13. Using data from Autumn 2020 and Spring 2021 we analyse student accounts of how continued disruptions to teaching and learning have impacted them. Variable access to teachers, barriers to collaborative work, and challenges of remote or reduced contact working have resulted in reduced depth and breadth of learning. Additionally, many students reported negative impacts on mathematical confidence and wider mental health

Teaching and learning for ‘moving goal-posts’: reformed A Levels in mathematics

Reformed English pre-university mathematics ‘A levels’ feature enhanced content and renewed focus on mathematical reasoning and problem solving. Related assessments, at scale from 2019, had negligible piloting, and preparation time for resources and teaching was pressured, with teachers/assessors typically having little experience of teaching/assessing for the renewed foci. We used an institutional ethnographic lens to study the first 3 years’ enactment from the leading awarding organisation, and impact on students’ learning, affect and pathways. We followed students and teachers in a fairly representative sample of 46 classes, drawing on termly data collection. Initial ‘specimen assessments’ were largely considered valid and accessible; however, we evidence insecurity due to perceptions of ‘moving goal posts’. Early final assessments were perceived as significantly more demanding than predecessor comparators and of limited reliability for many students. We analyse contribution to knowledge around introduction of curriculum aspirations at this level and discuss ways to address identified challenges

Covid 19: Impacts on teaching, learning and progression for A Levels in Mathematics.

We report on ways that teaching and learning for mathematics A Levels, studied pre-university in England (by students aged 16-18), was disrupted by Covid19 in Summer 2020. Findings are contextualised within teacher and student accounts of the aspirational and time-pressured nature of these reformed qualifications. We explore the nature of engagement with mathematics achieved by year 12 and 13 students during lockdown, and the preparedness of 2019-20 year 11 and 13 students for progression into A Level/Higher Education respectively. Our findings derive from the third year of a four-year study (2017/18 to 2020/21) exploring enactment and impact of reformed mathematics A Levels, and efficacy of associated Pearson resources and assessments. Research tools were adapted to focus on impacts of Covid19. We present a snapshot (March to July 2020), of teachers and students looking to the future in a time of uncertainty and rapid change

Electrodynamics of Amorphous Media at Low Temperatures

Amorphous solids exhibit intrinsic, local structural transitions, that give rise to the well known quantum-mechanical two-level systems at low temperatures. We explain the microscopic origin of the electric dipole moment of these two-level systems: The dipole emerges as a result of polarization fluctuations between near degenerate local configurations, which have nearly frozen in at the glass transition. An estimate of the dipole's magnitude, based on the random first order transition theory, is obtained and is found to be consistent with experiment. The interaction between the dipoles is estimated and is shown to contribute significantly to the Gr\"{u}neisen parameter anomaly in low $T$ glasses. In completely amorphous media, the dipole moments are expected to be modest in size despite their collective origin. In partially crystalline materials, however, very large dipoles may arise, possibly explaining the findings of Bauer and Kador, J. Chem. Phys. {\bf 118}, 9069 (2003).Comment: Submitted for publication; April 27, 2005 versio

UK Large-scale Wind Power Programme from 1970 to 1990: the Carmarthen Bay experiments and the Musgrove Vertical-Axis Turbines

This article describes the development of the Musgrove Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) concept, the UK ‘Carmarthen Bay’ wind turbine test programme, and UK government’s wind power programme to 1990. One of the most significant developments in the story of British wind power occurred during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, with the development of the Musgrove vertical axis wind turbine and its inclusion within the UK Government’s wind turbine test programme. Evolving from a supervisor’s idea for an undergraduate project at Reading University, the Musgrove VAWT was once seen as an able competitor to the horizontal axis wind systems that were also being encouraged at the time by both the UK government and the Central Electricity Generating Board, the then nationalised electricity utility for England and Wales. During the 1980s and 1990s the most developed Musgrove VAWT system, along with three other commercial turbine designs was tested at Carmarthen Bay, South Wales as part of a national wind power test programme. From these developmental tests, operational data was collected and lessons learnt, which were incorporated into subsequent wind power operations.http://dx.doi.org/10.1260/03095240677860621

“I get better and better all the time”: Impact of resources on pupil and teacher confidence

We report on the findings from the first year of a two-year study exploring how teachers and children experience and use Pearson Abacus resources, including perceptions of impact on (teacher and children’s) confidence. Abacus was designed to foster a confident learning environment for children to master mathematical concepts within the 2014 English National Curriculum. Data were collected from nine schools: from teachers and pupils in nine KS1 classes and nine KS2 classes, and from the schools’ Maths Coordinators. Teachers considered Abacus impacted positively on both their own and children's confidence to work mathematically. However, some teacher confidence may not be well-founded, and the learning potential of the resources is not being harnessed, if they do not use the support provided to enhance their subject (and subject pedagogical) knowledge for teaching a richly conceptual network

Short-wave infrared barriode detectors using InGaAsSb absorption material lattice matched to GaSb

Short-wave infrared barriode detectors were grown by molecular beam epitaxy. An absorption layer composition of In0.28Ga0.72As0.25Sb0.75 allowed for lattice matching to GaSb and cut-off wavelengths of 2.9 μm at 250 K and 3.0 μm at room temperature. Arrhenius plots of the dark current density showed diffusion limited dark currents approaching those expected for optimized HgCdTe-based detectors. Specific detectivity figures of around 7×1010 Jones and 1×1010 Jones were calculated, for 240 K and room temperature, respectively. Significantly, these devices could support focal plane arrays working at higher operating temperatures