“Mathematics is not about numbers, equations, computations, or algorithms: it is about understanding.”

William Paul Thurston

The Cape School Curriculum ensures that all our students have the opportunity for academic and personal development across a broad range of subjects and experiences. It combines equality of opportunity to our core learning with opportunities for students to make individual choices regarding their learning experiences.  Acquisition of knowledge and transferable skills are the cornerstones of our student’s progress and we place a high value on building their understanding of community, place and social justice. Lessons and other learning experiences are sequenced to build on students’ prior knowledge, and to ensure that students deepen their understanding of each subject, and the interconnection between subjects and their global context.

Our Curriculum is the foundation to achieving our Core Principles:

• Students leave Cape with high value achievements and the life skills and resilience that provide a platform for future success and happiness.
• We are inspired to work together to research, design and implement highly effective and sustainable solutions to develop and maintain our thriving school community.
• Continuous improvement is achieved through a whole school culture of, and commitment to, creativity, engagement and professionalism.

What is Unique to the study of Mathematics

Mathematics is essential for everyday life and understanding our world. It is also essential to science, technology and engineering, and the advances in these fields on which our economic future depends.

It is therefore fundamentally important to ensure that all pupils have the best possible mathematics education. They need to understand the mathematics they learn so they can be creative in solving problems, as well as being confident and fluent in developing and using the mathematical skills so valued in the world of industry and higher education, as well as those needed for everyday life. 

The Mathematics Department aims to provide all students with a rewarding and enjoyable experience of mathematics. We will prepare students to become confident, numerate individuals who are able to deal with all aspects of mathematics in their chosen career and in all aspects of their adult life.  This will be accomplished through our commitment to excellent teaching, a well-designed curriculum with an interesting variety of lessons to motivate and engage all students. 

We have high expectations of all students so that they will recognise and achieve their full potential. We hope that students will develop their own skills in analysis, reasoning, creativity, collaboration and self evaluation so that they can meet the mathematical problems they face with thoughtfulness and enthusiasm.

In Mathematics, our Key (or ‘Repeat’) Concepts are:

1. Multiplicative change
2. Algebraic techniques
3. Applications
4. Reasoning and communication
5. Representations