Anyone any good at proof reading?

hypallage

At school we have a bursary available for a post to develop literacy across the curriculum. There is one available for each department. I am in maths, therefore literacy is not my strongest point, but as mathematicians go I am not too bad. I would quite like this role though....

My letter of application (limited to 1 side of A4) is below - any useful comments would be appreciated.

Many thanks
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A recent report by Ofsted highlights the good practice of 12 schools showing that it is possible for all schools to achieve the highest standards of literacy, regardless of their social and economic background, ethnicity, languages spoken at home, special needs and disability. In many cases students underperform in maths as their progress is hampered by poor basic skills in literacy. With the move towards more functional questions in GCSE papers the need for literacy skills increases.
Having given some thought and consideration to the literacy audit I feel that there are a surprising number of areas within maths where we expect the students to be literate. From interpreting information given, be it in written form or as charts & diagrams, to justifying an answer there are many opportunities within maths for developing literacy skills.

I feel that this post would sit very well with my Masters. I have the skills necessary to research and develop ideas, trying them out on a small scale before implementing them across the department. I am very willing to try new ideas and am good at reflecting on where things can be improved.

I feel that, in maths, we do expect students to be able to read and understand questions, sometimes a student is unable to answer a question because they do not understand what is being asked of them & this does need to be developed.

Writing at a sentence level is of less relevance in maths, although we do use very specific language and expect pupils to be able to spell and use key words correctly. There are opportunities for developing writing skills though, such as asking pupils to write an explanation of a concept targeted at different audiences. One important use of writing skills in maths is encouraging pupils to write down initial ideas when solving problems or writing explanations, either using a writing frame, a mind-map or rough jottings.

Oral literacy can be developed within mathematics through the use of group work and work in pairs. As well as being able to discuss ideas between themselves this is an ideal opportunity for pupils to be able to explain ideas and concepts to each other, as well as giving them the chance to challenge ideas put forward by other pupils.

I would very much relish the chance to work with other departments and develop strategies that would be effective in ensuring that our students are given the best chance of reaching their potential within maths.