Lynne was appointed to the new post of Director of Cambridge Mathematics in November 2014. This University-wide programme brings together the expertise of OCR, Cambridge International Examinations, Cambridge University Press, the University’s Mathematics and Education Faculties and the wider University community in a collaborative enterprise. The vision is to secure a world class mathematics education for students from 5 to 19, applicable to both international and national contexts and based on evidence from national and international research and practice.
For Lynne McClure's biography please visit the Cambridge Mathematics website.
Lynne writes:
I came to Cambridge Mathematics from the prestigious NRICH project, based in Cambridge University’s Centre for Mathematical Sciences. NRICH is a well-established maths education project which works across the Maths and Education Faculties. Its aim is to enhance the mathematical experiences of all students through offering rich activities which promote mathematical thinking. This philosophy is one I hold dear and which I hope will permeate Cambridge Mathematics.
I’ve been lucky to have had a very varied career in mathematics education. Having gained my first degree at University College London, I went on to Oxford University to study for my PGCE. My first teaching position was as a secondary maths teacher at a large comprehensive school in Oxford. During the first few years I realised I needed to know more about why students found maths difficult and so I decided to pursue further study, and en route became a primary teacher.
While teaching as a head of a small primary school, I maintained links with teacher training, and eventually became Principal Lecturer and course leader in Maths Education at Oxford Brookes and Edinburgh Universities. I really valued the opportunity to combine work at the chalk face with academic research. I became especially interested in what constitutes an appropriate maths curriculum for highly able students and headed-up the design of various national courses to support enrichment in both primary and secondary schools. A move to Scotland was the impetus to set up my own education consultancy which took me all over the world, offering fascinating insights into different philosophies and pedagogies. My portfolio included speaking at numerous conferences, leading professional development in all phases and authoring and editing many books and articles. I was also Principal Examiner for World Class Tests.
While at NRICH I was also Principal Investigator on the DfE-funded Cambridge Mathematics Education Project (CMEP). I chaired the teams which attempted to advise ministers on the content of the new English National Curriculum and associated assessments, which gave me an insight into the development of government policy. I was a member of the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education from 2009 to 2013 and remain on the Outer Circle of confidential advisors. I am a Chartered Maths Teacher and an invited Fellow of the IMA and ISDDE. I am very active in the maths education community and am delighted to be the current President of the Mathematical Association.
Cambridge Mathematics Framework
Cambridge Mathematics will be a coherent and aspirational programme, bringing together four interconnected elements; a curriculum Framework, related assessments, supporting resources and professional development. The Framework will be the spine for all future work. I launched of the ‘Cambridge Mathematics Framework’ at a one-day conference on 11 March 2015. This event marked the start of the consultation process, inviting feedback from the maths education community both internationally and from within the UK.
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