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https://studyandhealthcaretips.blogspot.com/2012/08/why-maths-should-be-compulsory-for-all.html[/postlink]
Studying maths until the end of sixth form would benefit both scientists and non-scientists.
While some thanked the heavens they had escaped the proposals, others labeled the report ridiculous, pointing out that had they been forced to take a maths A-level, they may not have made it to university.
It's not hard to see why. Maths is seen as difficult and intimidating by many. Even I, a natural sciences student, was able to say "I hate maths" in 3 different languages well before I'd mastered calculus. But despite all this, I think the proposals are a good idea.
Few students have decided what degree course they want to study by the time they're 16. Lack of advice, even in good schools, means that many are unaware that if they don't sign up to maths, their choices are immediately restricted.
Admittedly, not all science degrees currently demand a maths A-level, mainly because there are so few candidates equipped with the qualification that they can't afford to turn people down on this basis.
However maths is core to modern science and a student who has not studied it post-16 is at a huge disadvantage. As a physicist, maths was often the hardest part of my course.
Maths enables you to understand the statistics used in the news, make sense of the economy, medicine and law. Without the capacity to deal with numbers you're placed at a disadvantage socially and financially. Unfortunately, GCSEs don't go far enough.
On a practical note, if students feel they are unlikely to achieve a good grade but don't want to jeopardise their Ucas application, maths could be taken as a fourth or fifth subject.
A-level maths teaching is vital if we are to to improve the state of science in our universities. Given the prominence of maths in adult life, it wouldn't hurt the non-scientists either.
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