“One of the great strengths of MathsClub is its pedagogical model”

“One of the great strengths of MathsClub is its pedagogical model”

by | Dec 17, 2020 | Case studies

Zeerust Primary School, Victoria

Dr Peter Farrell, EdD

School Principal

What challenge were you trying to solve by using MathsClub?

Our school is small. Very small and there are gaps between grades. This year we had a lone Grade 6 and the next cohort of students were in Grade 4. We were concerned that our lone Grade 6 wouldn’t get some of the very specific mathematical teaching in a general whole class situation. MathsClub helped us to address this problem. Later they extended their offerings to include Grade 4s and in the interests of providing mathematic tutoring to all our senior students we included them too.

Have you observed any changes in students enrolled?

Two of the girls were already fairly confident mathematicians while one had less confidence and basic knowledge. All girls have shown greater confidence, motivation and knowledge. I am looking forward to seeing the results of our regular maths tests this coming November.

Apart from maths learning & confidence building, do you see any other benefits to your students working with people not from the local area?

By a weird set of circumstances our school is near a very multicultural regional city but is a mono-culture itself. Working with people from another country has helped the girls assimilate into the wider community.

What’s been your experience of the MathsClub team so far?

Positive!

How was MathsClub able to support you during the Covid disruption?

The girls continued with their scheduled sessions, but from home. Weekly updates kept me and their parents in the loop.

Will MathsClub remain a regular intervention program for your school?

It depends upon the needs and make-up of the students, our next year’s Grade 4s would definitely benefit.

Do you think other schools would benefit from MathsClub? If so, why?

I think one of the great strengths of MathsClub is its pedagogical model. The children are continually engaged in a dialogue with their tutors and for the whole of the 45 minute session they are ‘doing mathematical thinking’. For a school like ours where you may have one child in a grade I know that for a small part of the week that child is really doing challenging maths.

5 Top tips for School Budgets

5 Top tips for School Budgets

by | Oct 12, 2020 | School leadership

All principals know setting a school budget is a key responsibility that goes with the job.

While it can often feel like an arduous task that doesn’t directly relate to teaching, its impact will have a profound impact on the quality of education students receive. Effective school leaders will regard schools budgets as a great opportunity to reflect and set priorities for the coming year.

Here are our top tips to help you get ahead:

 1. Focus on long term school goals

Before you begin, it’s helpful to sit down with the leadership team and other key stakeholders (PCA/P&C) to discuss goals for the upcoming and future years. These goals may already be articulated in your various school plans:  

  • School Improvement plan
  • Business plan 
  • Investing for success
  • Etc… 

The primary goal of a school is to ensure quality education for all of its students. This means not just academic results but personal and social development as well as 21st century skills – in other words, your school vision/motto/values! 

The budget allows you progress towards these goals so think bold and use the group discussions to get buy-in for your vision. There are many tools such as ‘Objective, Key Results’ (see how Google use it) or ‘Key Performance Indicators’ that can help you track your progress. Pick the right one for you and remember to think long term.

2. Plan for the unexpected 

Managing a budget is equally as important as creating your budget. It’s important to schedule checkpoints to assess how progress is going and hold those responsible for implementing the budget responsibilities to account. 

It’s always wise to ensure that you have some safety funds to meet unexpected expenses such as those seen this year with the Covid disruption. Furthermore, priorities may change throughout the year which you should be able to respond to.

 3. Do your homework

Each school receives different funding depending on their school profile, location, sector and state. Make sure you understand all the different funding available and whether you are eligible for additional funding. Remember that some funding will come with specific restrictions on what it can be spent on. 

Next you will need to ensure that you are looking at historical spending and what prudent steps can be taken to reduce expenditure. E.g. If you’ve had a lot of unexpected costs such as building repairs then it may make sense to increase building maintenance spend to prevent expensive repairs down the road.

4. Work smart, not hard!

Each expense counts towards the bottom line, money spent on one thing means money not spent on everything else. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that you consider the impact of each expenditure on your progress towards your long term goals. 

We all know that value for money is important, but what does that mean in a school context? One may consider it better value for money to get a job done by a member of staff, rather than hire speacilist. While this may save money, it has other costs: time, focus and staff sentiment. The same logic applies to your time and mental bandwidth, anything that can help save you time and allow you to focus on leading your team and ensuring high quality education is worth considering.

“MathsClub stood out because of the fact that is was 1-to-1 tutoring and it was within our budget”

Paul Harper-Green

Principal, Wyandra State School, QLD

 5. Think like a Salesperson

Here’s your opportunity to demonstrate your business savviness and eye for an opportunity. There are lots of potential ways to either supplement funding or reduce costs by thinking like a salesperson. Here are some suggestions to get you started…

  • Negotiate with vendors for discounts if you buy with other schools
  • Engage local businesses for sponsorship for teams/activities/events/publications
  • Have local community members contribute time to support the school – a great way to engage and build community connections
  • Where possible and appropriate ask parents to contribute to costs – some of our partner schools have parents subside the cost of MathsClub for their children

One deputy head’s suggestion resulted in the school receiving 10s of thousands by selling a billboard advertising space while a school building along a busy road was under construction. While the deputy head received a lot of praise for this, he actually had undersold the advertising space by about 50%. Nevertheless, every penny counts!

2020 Pimary School Budget Survey

Take part in annual survey which aims to evaluate variances across different regions & sectors.

We do not request any personal or school identifiable information and all insights will relate only to aggregate data.

Complete survey

“MathsClub has enabled a struggling student to re-engage in her maths learning, gain confidence and feel success again”

“MathsClub has enabled a struggling student to re-engage in her maths learning, gain confidence and feel success again”

by | Oct 9, 2020 | Case studies

Bobs Farm Public School, NSW

Megan Elliott

School Principal B.A, M.Ed.Stud, Dip Teach

 

What motivated you to try MathsClub at your school?

A senior primary student had disengaged and had been avoiding maths learning. She had fallen behind in her year levels. MathsClub was a way of re-engaging her in maths in a busy classroom. We trialled 2 students on a program which was effective.

How have your students responded to MathsClub?

Both students have loved the program! They liked getting their new headsets, having their own tutor who could explain concepts well at an individual level. Students explain their mathematical reasoning and are assisted every step of the way.

Would you consider enrolling more students on MathsClub? 

Yes, we have been very happy with the individual student support, feedback and follow up from the company. 

How does MathsClub compare to other programs you have used?

MathsClub is an individual maths tutor program. It’s personable, friendly and re-engaging for the student. The teacher has received student reports by email. Other online programs we have used do not have the person to person interaction.

What would you  say to other schools considering using MathsClub?  

MathsClub has enabled a struggling student to re-engage in her maths learning, gain confidence and feel success again. A more able student was also involved in a program so they both felt special. The school paid for the program which was much more affordable than the parents paying for a private tutor. Our small school would highly recommend MathsClub. They are highly professional, flexible, supportive and followed our curriculum well. 

“We have been very pleased with the results we are getting”

“We have been very pleased with the results we are getting”

by | Oct 9, 2020 | Case studies

Leanne Hohnke-Jansen

Principal, Bedourie State School, Queensland

 

What led you to try MathsClub at your school?

We had two newer students (sisters), who were achieving well below their expected level. They had been on distance education prior to joining us, so were very used to a one on one situation, and really struggled to engage in the whole classroom setting.

How did your students respond to having their very own tutor?

These girls were very used to this style of delivery and learning, so they have responded extremely well.

What changes, if any, have you observed in your students’ attitude, mindset and confidence toward maths and learning in general?

All of the above have improved dramatically!! This is not only the case with their maths, but throughout all of their learning.

Would you consider enrolling more of your students?

We have already discussed this at a school level, and can certainly see the value in enrolling students when they require extra support around specific topics.  At this point in time, our extension work is usually done in conjunction with the Impact Centre, but I certainly wouldn’t rule out using MathsClub for this either.

What would you say to other schools considering using MathsClub? 

Give it a go!! We have been very pleased with the results we are getting, as well as the communication we receive re student progress.

Teachers’ biggest worries about transitioning to online learning… and tips on how to overcome them

Teachers’ biggest worries about transitioning to online learning… and tips on how to overcome them

by | Apr 10, 2020 | Coivd-19, Online learning

From teachers in Croatia delivering video lessons hosted on National TV, to students in Egypt receiving free SIM cards to pursue online learning from their devices*, one thing is certain – education is changing. Schools all over the world are transitioning to online forms of education in order to ensure that students still have access to quality education in these unprecedented times

 

Change and fear of the unknown can be worrying, especially for the educators responsible for ensuring learning continues. We’ve gathered and listed the most common current worries of teachers, along with our advice on how to overcome them

Worry Number 1:

The Digital Divide

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Ensure you know this information about each one of your students, and bear it in mind when planning.

Don’t rely on live lessons or conferencing as the one source of learning, but use these as an ‘opt-in’ to supplement projects or lessons which students can complete at their own pace. This might include entirely offline projects, the details of which you may need to print and send home for students. Don’t worry – you don’t need to reinvent the wheel here! Educators around the world are going through the same transition, and so there is a wealth of resources accessible online. Check information provided from your Department of Education as they may have provided resources aligned to the relevant curriculum, such as the offline learning scheme from FUSE from the Victoria (Australia) State Government.

Reassure your students, and their families. Let them know what support will be available, and how they should reach out for help if they need it.

Worry Number 2:

More Exposure to the Internet = More Safety Risks

Digital Citizenship and Digital Safety has never been so relevant and important. The internet can be a scary world for children and their parents/caregivers, if not used in the right way. As their teacher, you can help learners to use the internet safely.

  • Schedule in teaching digital safety as part of your curriculum. Young people now more than ever need to understand the risks around using the internet and how to mitigate such. Use Digital Citizenship lessons to raise awareness, and to develop learners’ critical thinking skills, compassion and self-awareness

We love Google’s ‘Be Internet Awesome’ initiative. Check it out here. You’ll find The Internet Code of Awesome; a useful mantra for students to follow, as well as to help parents manage digital safety. There’s also an entire ‘Be Internet Awesome’ Curriculum containing great resources such as a template communication to parents/carers, structured lesson and activity plans, and an interactive game whereby students can learn to be safe as they play.

  • Seize the opportunity to teach students to use technology in a productive way, and help them see the value in digital skills. With the label ‘Quaranteens’ already flying around the internet, many may worry that our younger generation will lack the stimulation and/or motivation provided by traditional classroom learning. We like to take a glass-half-full-approach and think of the increased exposure to technology as a brilliant opportunity for students to develop essential skills needed for jobs of the future.

Google for Education offers more free stuff to make your life easier with their free Applied Digital Skills Teaching Resources. Find set projects which develop students’ digital literacy. There are also lessons and starter activities for teachers to use, appropriate even if you’ve never taught anything IT related before

Worry Number 3:

Teachers themselves not being ‘tech-savvy’

 

Share, share, share! Speak to your colleagues, peers and other teachers online to get and give support with online learning

Spend some time investing in your own development. There are tons of online courses, articles, Youtube videos and so on which you can use to improve your own teaching and digital literacy. Check out Coursera and Udemy, both host free and paid accredited courses in a range of disciplines.

Worry Number 4:

Things going wrong

Internet drops, broken hardware, lost log-ins, student disengagement, the cat walking over the laptop mid-class-video-conference… Transitioning to online learning may feel like the epitome of Murphy’s Law.

Be prepared for things to not always go smoothly, and have a back up plan for students to engage in learning which doesn’t require technology, in case they are unable to access any lessons or resources

Use this period as an opportunity to experiment, learn and grow in the process of doing so! Gather feedback from your students and their parents/carers. Did the project you assigned take the expected amount of time, or longer? What method of learning has been the most engaging for your learners? Collaborate with your community, and don’t be too hard on yourself when things don’t quite go to plan… sometimes that’s when the magic happens

Worry Number 5:

At risk students falling further behind

Many educators and caregivers worry that students being removed from the classroom can impact not only their attainment but could also be detrimental to their personal development and wellbeing. School is a safe haven for many of our learners with diverse needs, and the transition from school to home learning could put our disadvantaged children further behind their peers.

EAL students may naturally speak in their mother tongue more often at home, and as a result their English Language development may naturally decelerate. Students with Autism or other students who crave routine and familiarity may struggle with learning in a different environment. Students with gaps in learning in core subjects may struggle with retention more so than when in class. All of our students, like all of us, will have a forced change in their levels of interaction with friends, family and other important people from their daily lives, from the bus driver to the playground supervisor. The good news is, social distancing (or, more aptly, physical distancing) doesn’t have to mean a lack of social interaction.

Take time to check in with your students and make yourself available for students and parents/carers to speak to you when needed. You could organise ‘drop-in’ video conferences for a set 30 mins per day, whereby any student can join by open invitation, to ask any questions or just to have a chat.

Smaller virtual group sessions may help your students with special needs or a fortnightly phone call with individuals could be of great value to your student and their parent/carer

Let us help.

Making an investment in one-to-one tuition can ensure that your at risk students remain engaged and supported in mathematics during these unprecedented times.

Our tutors have a wealth of experience of delivering online maths intervention and our Learning Plans can be tailored to meet individual needs of students. You may even want to have your whole class engage in sessions, to free up some of your own time.

Get in touch with us to discuss how best MathsClub can support you to support your learners