Professional development

Here are brief reports of three parallel lessons about loci for Year 7 all-attainment groups that were planned together but ended up different. I leave a lot to your interpretation but the point is to notice the language that is used, the way tools are used and the order of tasks. These could lead to different ways to build an understanding of loci. You could go deep and consider how your own conceptualisation of loci could be authentically presented to learners through the tasks, or you could react in a more immediate way about whether you would, or would not, have done what they did.

Professor Anne Watson taught mathematics in challenging schools before moving into the University of Oxford. She works with teachers, educators and researchers worldwide on mathematics curriculum, task design and pedagogy. She has published numerous books and articles including ‘Key Ideas in Teaching Mathematics’, 'Questions and Prompts for Mathematical Thinking', 'Thinkers' and ‘Care in Mathematics Education'. As Strategic Chair for the Bucks, Berks and Oxon Maths Hub, she is in constant touch with all phases of mathematics education.

Age: Secondary