Published October 11, 2019 | Version v1
Conference paper Open

WHAT'S THE POINT: EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF THE BONUS POINTS INITIATIVE FOR MATHEMATICS

  • 1. EPISTEM, University of Limerick
  • 2. University College Cork
  • 3. University of Brighton

Description

Since 2012 mathematics has been assigned a special status within Irish post-primary education with the introduction of a Bonus Points initiative (BPI). Students are now awarded an extra 25 CAO points in their upper post-primary school state examination results if they achieve a passing grade at higher-level. These extra points will increase the likelihood of these students getting a place on the course of their choice at third level. This incentive was introduced to encourage students to study the subject at higher-level. Anecdotally there have been many mixed reviews about the success of the BPI. While the numbers taking HL mathematics have steadily increased, there have been concerns expressed that many students who are not mathematically capable of performing up to the standard required are now opting for the HL paper and that the difficulty of this examination and the marking schemes have been adjusted accordingly (Treacy, 2018). This paper reports on a national study, the first of its kind in Ireland, that was conducted to investigate teachers’ perspectives (n = 266) on the BPI. The authors will investigate if the increase in the number of students studying higher-level mathematics in Ireland has occurred in tandem with an increase in the mathematical proficiency of post-primary students and will ascertain the impact of the BPI on the profile of higher-level mathematics classes. It will report on findings from a national study.

Files

OMeara_N.pdf

Files (307.9 kB)

Name Size Download all
md5:cf8c6ed7086973b7bc16fd5079bab89b
307.9 kB Preview Download

Additional details

References

  • Boaler, J., Wiliam, D., & Brown, M. (2000). Students' experiences of ability grouping-disaffection, polarisation and the construction of failure. British educational research journal, 26 (5), 631- 648.
  • Brown, M., Brown, P., & Bibby, T. (2008). "I would rather die": Reasons given by 16-year-olds for not continuing their study of mathematics. Research in Mathematics Education, 10 (1), 3- 18.
  • Charbannier, É., & Vayssettes, S. (2009). PISA 2009 Presentation Note (France). Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Available: www.oecd.org/pisa/46624019.pdf
  • Chinnappan, M., Dinham, S., Herrington, A.J. & Scott, D. (2008). Year 12 students' and higher mathematics: Emerging issues. In P. Jeffreys (Ed.), AARE 2007 International Educational Research Conference Proceedings (pp. 10-20). Freemantle: Association for Active Educational Researchers.
  • DeWitt, J., Archer, L., & Moote, J. (2018). 15/16-Year-Old Students' Reasons for Choosing and Not Choosing Physics at a Level. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 1-17.
  • Garg, K. C., & Gupta, B. M. (2003). Decline in science education in India–A case study at+ 2 and undergraduate level. Current Science, 84 (9), 1198-1201.
  • Goodrum, D., Druhan, A., & Abbs, J. (2012). The status and quality of year 11 and 12 science in Australian schools. Canberra, ACT: Australian Academy of Science.
  • Hallam, S., & Ireson, J. (2003). Secondary school teachers' attitudes towards and beliefs about ability grouping. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 73(3), 343-356.
  • Hodgen, J., Foster, C., Marks, R., & Brown, M. (2018). Evidence for review of mathematics teaching: Improving mathematics in key stages two and three. London: Education Endowment Foundation.
  • Kennedy, J., Lyons, T., & Quinn, F. (2014). The continuing decline of science and mathematics enrolments in Australian high schools. Teaching Science, 60 (2), 34-46.
  • Linchevski, L., & Kutscher, B. (1998). Tell me with whom you're learning, and I'll tell you how much you've learned: Mixed-ability versus same-ability grouping in mathematics. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 533-554.
  • Murphy, C., Lundy, L., Emerson, L., & Kerr, K. (2013). Children's perceptions of primary science assessment in England and Wales. British Educational Research Journal, 39 (3), 585-606.
  • National Commission on Mathematics, & Science Teaching for the 21st Century (US). (2000). Before it's too late: A report of the National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century. Washington, DC: Diane Publishing Company.
  • Noyes, A. (2013). The effective mathematics department: Adding value and increasing participation?. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 24 (1), 1-17.
  • State Examinations Commission (SEC) 2018. State examinations statistics. Published: State Examinations Commission (SEC). Available from: https://www.examinations.ie/statistics/
  • Taylor, B., Francis, B., Archer, L., Hodgen, J., Pepper, D., Tereshchenko, A., & Travers, M. C. (2017). Factors deterring schools from mixed attainment teaching practice. Pedagogy, Culture & Society, 25(3), 327-345.
  • Treacy, P. T. (2018). Incentivizing advanced mathematics study at upper secondary level: the case of bonus points in Ireland. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 49 (3), 417-436.
  • Veal, W. R., & Flinders, D. J. (2001). How block scheduling reform effects classroom practice. The High School Journal, 84 (4), 21-31.
  • Wolf, A. (2002) Does education matther? Myths about education and econdomic growth. London, UK: Penguin.