Maths Week Ireland:Promoting mathematical literacy,

throughout and beyond education

Cordula Weiss, Eoin Gill, Sheila DoneganMaths Week Ireland, Waterford Institute of Technology

Conference on Research in Mathematical Education in Ireland

11 October 2019

Calmast STEM Engagement Centre

Waterford Institute of Technology’s STEM Engagement Centre

Maths Week Ireland: Maths for all

Founders: Dr Sheila Donegan & Eoin Gill

with partners across Ireland

Vision: to develop, promote and nurture

a positive attitude towards maths and its

applications in everyone

Maths Week Ireland

Maths Week is Ireland’s biggest STEM festival and the biggest festival of its kind in the world:

400,000 participated in 2018

And you can put your school on the map too!

Register now: www.mathsweek.ie

Ireland’s most famous

Oscar Wilde

Samuel Beckett

James Joyce

Maths in Ireland?

Let’s put them on the map!

William Hamilton Gabriel Stokes George Boole

Maths Week posters

Maths in Merrion Square

Maths in Merrion Square

Maths in Merrion Square

STEMreach Problem Solving

6 week sustained engagement modular programme

Primary & secondary schools linked with industry and

3rd level education

Peer learning: 15 year olds work with 11/12 year olds

Increase students’ enjoyment of problem solving.

Increase their confidence in problem solving.

Improve their problem solving abilities.

Impact on secondary students

+ 54 % + 42 % + 17 %

confidence in problem solving

ability of problem solving

enjoyment of problem solving

And 48 % of secondary students believed that their communication skills had improved.

Impact on primary pupils

+ 33 %

attitudetowards problem solving

confidence in problem solving

And 88 % of primary pupils believed that their problem solving ability had improved.

+ 19 %

STEMreach Problem Solving

Solve a classical puzzle and develop strategies

Create a physical model of the puzzle

Present this to primary pupils in Puzzle Fair

Work out problem solving strategies with primary pupils

Secondary students take ownership and are responsible for

the learning outcome. They…

Towers of Hanoi

Königsberg Bridges

The old town of Königsberg has 7 bridges.

Can you take a walk through the town, visiting each part of the town and

crossing each bridge only once?

Maths Week: Maths for all!

Maths Week: positive attitude

More Positive No Change Less positive

% % %

signs of enjoying the subject 83 17 0

more able pupils’ attitudes 82 18 0

less able pupils’ attitudes 71 29 0

attitudes to finding mathematics hard 55 44 1

appreciating the value of being mathematical 65 35 0

viewing maths as more than just passing tests 85 15 0

coping with getting stuck 59 41 0

helping each other 87 13 0

seeing the value of mathematics for its own sake 69 31 0

working with others 86 14 0

keeping on task 71 29 0

2018 Teachers survey: 96 respondents

Maths Week 2019 is happening now

Upcoming events

The Maths of climate change and weather forecasting

Dr Alan Hally, Met Éireann

14 October, 7-8 pm, National Library of Ireland

New ways of doing sums

Dr Peter Lynch, UCD (Prof emeritus) and Irish Times columnist

16 October, 7-8 pm, National Library of Ireland

Upcoming events

Mallow Maths & Science Fair 12 October, 11.30 amMallow GAA

Maths in the Parlour 14/15 October, 1-3 pmDublin City Hall

Maths in the City (Dublin) 19 October, 12-4 pmCollege Green (BOI) Dublin

Celebration of Mind 20 October, 12-4 pmNational Botanic Gardens Dublin

Maths for all the family

Share your Maths Week story

Register on www.mathsweek.ie

Share your maths story and get in touch: #IUseMaths

mathsweek@wit.ie

mathsweek

mathsweek2019

mathsireland

http://www.mathsweek.ie/

Thank you! Go raibh maith agat!

50 partners

1,500 schools

400,000 participants