A view of the curriculum as helical suggests that topics are revisited and developed throughout a student’s experience learning mathematics. It also suggests that new topics build on aspects of previously learnt mathematics. Successful learning experiences require the teacher to understand the role of prior learning in developing students’ future learning.

Failure to take account of pupils’ learning can lead to less effective teaching. For example, work on probability that does not acknowledge pupils’ need to understand the equivalence of fractions, decimals and percentages, and work on trigonometry that does not build on pupils’ prior understanding of ratio and proportion will be teaching that misses lots of opportunities to develop pupils’ learning.

Identifying the prior learning necessary for a topic allows the work to be pitched at the right level. It allows topics the work is dependent on to be acknowledged, revised and linked to the current topic.

Where there is key prior knowledge for a topic this does not necessarily need to be fully taught beforehand. Students may develop an understanding of a simpler skill whilst learning a more complex one and will certainly practice simpler skills whilst working on a more advanced topic.

Starting from Where Learners Are