Initially, the introduction of the new A Level curriculum left many teachers, including myself, grappling with the new material, particularly the Large Data Set (LDS). Amidst the chaos brought by Covid-19, I found myself focusing on topics I was confident in teaching remotely, often overlooking the LDS due to its seemingly specific and low-scoring nature. However, my perceptions have evolved significantly over time. Through my role as a Subject Specialist for Pearson and delivering Continuing Professional Development (CPD), I’ve come to appreciate the LDS as a valuable teaching tool. Here’s what I’ve learned and wish I’d known earlier.
Despite the challenges, all exam boards were instructed to incorporate the LDS into their specifications. For instance, OCR Mathematics B (MEI) includes three LDS, covering topics such as weather, transport, and finance.
While this initiative sounds promising, the practical implementation has been somewhat lacking. In exams, questions often rely on short extracts or no data at all, testing familiarity rather than analysis or application. The assumption is that students will have extensively used the LDS in lessons, allowing them to recognize the data in the exam. However, this is seldom the case.
Relying solely on past paper questions to teach the LDS is not advisable. While they’re useful for most topics, they primarily assess familiarity, not build it. Instead, I suggest providing students with hands-on access to the LDS. This could be through booking a lesson in the ICT room or printing A3 copies of key sheets. Then, use past paper questions as inspiration, not as the activity itself.
Here’s a simple classroom activity that encourages students to engage directly with the data and the past paper question that inspired it:
Classroom Activity:
This activity encourages students to navigate the LDS sheets, make decisions about what data to use, and develop the familiarity examiners are looking for.
Yes, absolutely! While LDS-specific questions may only be worth a few marks, the dataset provides a rich context to teach a substantial portion of the statistics content. This includes topics like probability distributions, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis.
If you’re interested in a CPD session that delves deeper into the LDS and explores practical ways to teach it, please leave a comment below.
Jocelyn is an experienced A Level Mathematics teacher and examiner, having served as Head of Mathematics at a sixth form college. She is currently a course tutor for PMT Education and a subject specialist for Pearson, delivering both in-person and online CPD sessions. Jocelyn has also contributed to Ofqual’s work as a subject expert. Her research interests include teacher retention and recruitment, with a particular focus on improving the experiences of female teachers.
Correction Note: OCR has two specifications; Maths A H230/H240 has a single LDS, whereas Maths B (MEI) H630/H640 has three LDS that are assessed and updated in a three-year cycle. It’s challenging to find ‘off-the-shelf’ LDS ready for classroom use, so why not make use of all six available from the three exam boards.
Thank you for your comment, Steven. We’ve updated the article to reflect your correction. Great suggestion about leveraging all six LDS!
I’m glad I could help. I would be interested in online CPD on using the LDS more effectively.
