mean, median and mode - not needed now??

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steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by steppemum »

So, dd2 and I are preparing for sept. I have prepped a few kids over the last couple of years, mostly friend's kids, and have a good feel for the topics covered etc.
We have just started on data handling, and I am sorting out mean, median and mode to do this week. But then discover to my surprise that they have removed this from the CGP books.
Their data handling section now only includes mean, and not the rest.

I got out dd1's old books, from 3 years ago as I thought I was going mad, and no, her book had mean, median and mode, and the whole section had changed.

Then I checked the rest and probability has also gone.

So, anyone know anything about this? Is it due to the National Curriculum changes? Are you teaching your dcs just the topics in the CGP book, or going beyond?

I am in two minds, one the one hand I think they have taken it out as unecessary, on the other hand I think - how do they know???

Just wondering if anyone else noticed this.

If dd2 was my first I would never know it was missing....
Last edited by steppemum on Mon Apr 23, 2018 6:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by Guest55 »

Primary NC changed about four years ago.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... s-of-study" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by steppemum »

yes, I know the curriculum has changed.

The question was whether this is a reflection of that change.

Funnily enough I posted about the changes at the time and everyone on here was - why would the 11+ change??

And how does the CGP know, given that the exams are top secret, what is or isn't necessary? Given that there is stuff in the CGP books that is NOT on the primary curriculum, and they have left that in, so just wondering how they have decided that this is not necessary, but some of the other stuff still is.
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by Guest55 »

They are guessing ... as are every other publisher.
Daogroupie
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Location: Herts

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by Daogroupie »

I just posted on this exact topic after meeting a Y5 prep school student who had no idea what range was.

These are basic topics and come up all the time in 11 plus papers.

It is a real shame that just as the schools hike their 11 plus Maths papers the NC is dumbed down.

Primary school students are easily capable of grasping these concepts. DG
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by Guest55 »

Daogroupie wrote:I just posted on this exact topic after meeting a Y5 prep school student who had no idea what range was.

These are basic topics and come up all the time in 11 plus papers.

It is a real shame that just as the schools hike their 11 plus Maths papers the NC is dumbed down.

Primary school students are easily capable of grasping these concepts. DG
DG - the Primary curriculum has not been 'dumbed down' - new topics were added and some stats moved to secondary. Please get your facts right. Much of mean, mode and median wasn't really understood anyway and had to be retaught as students were supposed to understand more than how to calculate them!

The 'old' level 5 statement actually said:
* compare two simple distributions, using the range and one of mode, median or mean (mean and median are drawn from the Key Stage 3 programme of study)

As I posted these topics are just NOT in every 11+ test -
steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by steppemum »

thanks all.

hmm, still not sure if we should do them.

So, does that mean that median and mode are only taught at KS3 now?
And what about probability, that seems to have disappeared too, and the kids I have taught found that really hard, beyond very simple stuff, so would love to drop it.
steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by steppemum »

Sorry, just re-read the last post, so median and mode were always KS3, but they covered them at KS2 for kids doing level 5/6. (under old NC) But now they are not covered even by those kids due to the way the curriculum i snow taught? (greater depth, rather than teaching the next level.

Have I got that right?
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by Guest55 »

Yes but other topics [and more] have replaced them.

Bucksgfl used to have a useful document on their website but the website seems to have gone. However I did find this instead: http://www.mathematicshed.com/uploads/1 ... _proof.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

Re: mean, median and mode - not needed now??

Post by steppemum »

yes, I was about to ask about that Guest, as there are no new topics in the CGP books, so I was wondering if there was anything missing.
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