Institute for Employment Studies

ABSTRACT This paper explores the importance of mathematical skills for teaching science effectively to 14–16-year-olds and evaluates the support pre-service science teachers (PSTs) receive during their postgraduate initial teacher education (ITE) in England. Triggered by increased mathematical demands in the science curriculum, the study gathered data from 18 ITE providers (11% of national providers) during the 2023/2024 academic year. These providers completed a qualitative questionnaire on the mathematical support they offer. Additionally, 236 PSTs (11% of the national cohort) voluntarily completed a marking exercise with eight questions reflecting mathematical skills needed in secondary science teaching. Results highlight wide variability in mathematical preparation across ITE programmes. Only 13.5% of PSTs completed the exercise both correctly and confidently. Performance differences emerged by gender and subject specialism, with male PSTs and physics specialists performing better. Greater prior mathematics education also correlated with higher competence. The study recommends developing a mathematics skills audit and intervention tool for PSTs, integrating stronger mathematical content into ITE programmes, and conducting further research on PSTs’ mathematical development needs. These steps aim to address gaps in mathematical competence and ensure science teachers are well-prepared to deliver the curriculum effectively.

Abstract This study aimed to evaluate the results of a coaching programme, delivered virtually by external coaches, to support the psychological wellbeing of primary healthcare workers in England including general practitioners, dentists, pharmacists, and optometrists. Changes in perceived wellbeing and resilience were measured using the Short Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS) and Brief Resilience Coping Scale (BRCS). 662 participants completed pre- and post-coaching surveys. Of these, 216 also completed a follow-up survey. 20 interviews were conducted. Average scores significantly improved between pre-coaching and post-coaching on both SWEMWBS (partial η 2 =0.149) and BRCS (partial η 2 =0.134) and significantly declined between post-coaching and follow-up. Wellbeing scores at follow-up were greater than at pre-coaching. Increased wellbeing led to less intentions to leave (individual level) and increased most following multiple sessions. From interviews, wider impact was indicated (team and sector levels) which included supporting others and managing rising demand. This study increases our understanding of coaching as an intervention for employee wellbeing. Impact beyond individual level has emerged (e.g. improved team relationships). Previous research utilizes smaller samples or excludes follow-up data. Employers of time-pressured employees should consider short coaching sessions and how to sustain outcomes for longer.

International audience

Skill-based pay (SBP) has had a long but chequered history. However, interest in it has intensified recently in the UK, largely as a result of labour shortages and increasing and often unsatisfied demands for skills, which prevailing market-driven approaches to compensation have failed to address. It has become evident that SBP can provide a useful means of supporting organisations to attract, retain, develop and engage the increasing numbers and range of skilled people they need to grow and succeed. In this article we describe the current context within which SBP is being developed; review the historical development of the approach and then illustrate the increasingly varied range of methods now being taken to how SBP is being applied in the UK; and draw some tentative conclusions from our analysis for SBP’s practical application, along with implications for future research.

Various shared features among different summer education programmes emerged from the review, allowing us to cluster specific types of these interventions which then aided the structuring of the thematic synthesis. The three distinct clusters for summer education programmes were: catch-up programmes addressing attainment gaps, raising aspirations programmes inspiring young people to pursue the next stage of their education or career, and transition support programmes facilitating smooth transitions between educational levels. Depending on their aim, summer education programme tend to provide a combination of: additional instruction on core subjects (e.g., English, mathematics); academic classes including to enhance specialist subject knowledge (e.g., STEM-related); homework help; coaching and mentoring; arts and recreation electives; and social and enrichment activities. Summer employment programmes provide paid work placements or subsidised jobs typically in entry-level roles mostly in the third and public sectors, with some summer employment programmes also providing placements in the private sector. They usually include components of pre-work training and employability skills, coaching and mentoring. There are a number of mechanisms which act as facilitators or barriers to engagement in summer programmes. These include tailoring the summer programme to each young person and individualised attention; the presence of well-prepared staff who provide effective academic/workplace and socio-emotional support; incentives of a monetary (e.g., stipends and wages) or non-monetary (e.g., free transport and meals) nature; recruitment strategies, which are effective at identifying, targeting and engaging participants who can most benefit from the intervention; partnerships, with key actors who can help facilitate referrals and recruitment, such as schools, community action and workforce development agencies; format, including providing social activities and opportunities to support the formation of connections with peers; integration into the workplace, through pre-placement engagement, such as through orientation days, pre-work skills training, job fairs, and interactions with employers ahead of the beginning of the summer programme; and skill acquisition, such as improvements in social skills. In terms of the causal processes which lead from engagement in a summer programme to outcomes, these include: skill acquisition, including academic, social, emotional, and life skills; positive relationships with peers, including with older students as mentors in summer education programmes; personalised and positive relationships with staff; location, including accessibility and creating familiar environments; creating connections between the summer education programme and the students' learning at home to maintain continuity and reinforce learning; and providing purposeful and meaningful work through summer employment programmes (potentially facilitated through the provision of financial and/or non-financial incentives), which makes participants more likely to see the importance of education in achieving their life goals and this leads to raised aspirations. It is important to note that no single element of a summer programme can be identified as generating the causal process for impact, and impact results rather from a combination of elements. Finally, we investigated strengths and weaknesses in summer programmes at both the design and implementation stages. In summer education programmes, design strengths include interactive and alternative learning modes; iterative and progressive content building; incorporating confidence building activities; careful lesson planning; and teacher support which is tailored to each student. Design weaknesses include insufficient funding or poor funding governance (e.g., delays to funding); limited reach of the target population; and inadequate allocation of teacher and pupil groups (i.e., misalignment between the education stage of the pupils and the content taught by staff). Implementation strengths include clear programme delivery guidance and good governance; high quality academic instruction; mentoring support; and strong partnerships. Implementation weaknesses include insufficient planning and lead in time; recruitment challenges; and variability in teaching quality. In summer employment programmes, design strengths include use of employer orientation materials and supervisor handbooks; careful consideration of programme staff roles; a wide range of job opportunities; and building a network of engaged employers. Design weaknesses are uncertainty over funding and budget agreements; variation in delivery and quality of training between providers; challenges in recruitment of employers; and caseload size and management. Implementation strengths include effective job matching; supportive relationships with supervisors; pre-work training; and mitigating attrition (e.g., striving to increase take up of the intervention among the treatment group). Implementation weaknesses are insufficient monitors for the number of participants, and challenges around employer availability.

Introduction. Modern conditions of official activity of convoy and security police officers impose high demands on the level of their physical fitness. In their professional activities, they often face the need to use physical force, including martial art techniques against suspects and defendants for selfdefense, as well as to overcome resistance to legal demands. However, the use of physical force and fighting techniques is impossible without well-developed physical characteristics. This article considers the problem of formation and improvement of physical characteristics necessary for professional and service tasks of convoy and security police officers. Research methods. The author used a test method to determine the effectiveness of the obstacle course on the development of coordination abilities of convoy and security police units, and the method of mathematical statistics Student’s t-criterion for quantitative processing of the obtained results. Research results. The study conducted by the author involved trainees undergoing police professional training. The research was organised on the basis of Tuymen Institute for Advanced Training for employees of the MIA of Russia during the period from July to October 2022. At the beginning of the experimental and control group participants showed the same level of development of coordination abilities. During the pedagogical experiment practical physical training sessions for the representatives of the experimental group were carried out with using the principle of dynamic scheme of obstacle course; the representatives of the control group were trained according to the general plan. In the final test the results of the participants of the experimental group surpassed those of the control group. Based on the results the author concludes that the use of the obstacle course has an effective impact on the development of coordination abilities of the trainees.