Sixth Annual Stakeholders’ Report - Loughborough · PDF fileMoira Petrie (Assistant...

Mathematics Education Centre

Sixth Annual Stakeholders’ Report

August 2008

Third Annual Stakeholders’ Report August 20078

Contents

Summary 1

The Centre, its Mission, Personnel and Management 2Mission Statement 2 Structure and Management of the Mathematics Education Centre 3 Membership of the MEC Management Committee 3 Mathematics Education Centre Staff 3 Administrative and Computing Support 3 Physical Locations and Contact Details 3

Learning and Teaching 4Mathematics Learning Support Centre 4Postgraduate Certificate in Mathematics Support for Students with 6 Dyslexia and Dyscalculia in HE/FEStatistics Consultancy Service 6sigma – Centre for Excellence in Mathematics and Statistics Support 7Innovative Uses of Technology 9Outreach 10Research 11Grants and Awards 12Honorary Degree for Professor Celia Hoyles 12Fellowship for Professor Tony Croft 12Les Mustoe Retires 13 IMA/MEE 6th Conference and SEFI-MWG 14th European Seminar 2008 13

SummaryThe Mathematics Education Centre (MEC) was established in 2002 and has now, in the summer of 2008, completed its sixth academic year of operation. This Stakeholders’ Report gives us an opportunity to provide you with the latest information about the many developments that have taken place during the last twelve months and to outline some of our plans.The Centre was established to oversee the teaching of mathematics to engineers, to offer guidance on the mathematical content of any University module and to provide a focus for those interested in mathematics education. It is required to identify and implement more student-centred and student-sensitive means of teaching mathematics to students who come to University to study subjects other than mathematics. It is required to take into account the differing mathematical backgrounds from which these students come. The Centre houses the University’s highly-regarded Mathematics Learning Support Centre which offers services to any students needing help with basic mathematics, particularly in the early stages of their University life. A commitment to provide free access to learning resources of the highest quality and exceptional one-to-one support means that the environment in which Loughborough students learn mathematics is widely regarded as the envy of the sector. Staff in the Centre teach around twenty modules of mathematics and statistics each year, primarily to engineering undergraduates.

In 2005, the Centre was designated a Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL), now known as sigma, in recognition of its longstanding excellence in the delivery of university-wide mathematics support. A collaborative bid with Coventry University resulted in a total award of £4.85 million over the period 2005-2010, much of which is being spent directly upon improving the learning infrastructure and opportunities for all students at Loughborough. Extensively refurbished facilities in the Schofield Building now boast a fine student drop-in centre, interactive classroom equipped with the latest learning technologies, state-of the-art video conferencing facilities, learning spaces and staff accommodation. The interior of the new Centre has been decorated in collaboration with staff and students in the Loughborough University School of Art and Design – a move intended to emphasise the university-wide and holistic nature of our provision. The Eureka Centre for Mathematical Confidence is also located in the Schofield Building. The existing mathematics support centre in the Sir David Davies Building has been totally refurbished and extended, particularly for use by engineering and physics students, and also includes a resource area for specialist mathematicians. Centre staff have worked with Professional Development to offer courses in the use of new technologies in teaching, and in statistical research methods for postgraduate students and staff. A Statistics Advisory Service has been a highlight of the new sigma provision. Thus the MEC is sharing, working with and learning from groups of colleagues from a very broad range of Loughborough University departments. Beyond Loughborough and Coventry universities sigma funding has been used to develop mathematics support at the Universities of Leeds, Bath and Sheffield. A sigma hub in the South-West of England, coordinated from the University of Bath and a Scottish Mathematics Support Network coordinated from the University of St Andrews, mean that many others institutions have benefited from sigma resources and the expertise of sigma staff.

A key plank of the Centre’s strategy has been to develop pedagogic research to underpin its activities. The research focus is that niche of mathematics education research that explores, analyses and impacts upon policies and practices within the higher education sector. Later in this report Professor Barbara Jaworski describes developments that have taken place during the last year.

Outreach work with schools and colleges has continued to develop. Students who wish to study Further Mathematics at AS- and A-Level but who cannot do so within their own schools have been taught within the University through the North Leicestershire and South Nottinghamshire Further Mathematics Centres. Funding from the East Midlands Young, Gifted and Talented Excellence Hub initiative continues to enable us to run workshops designed to enhance the learning of mathematics-based subjects. The Centre is now working to develop a presence in the Snibston Discovery Park, aimed at encouraging more young people to develop an interest in mathematical aspects of the world around them.

Now is an exciting time for mathematics education – after several years in the doldrums there are now many high profile national initiatives aimed at revitalising mathematics. The MEC has been part of this effort and will continue to lead and contribute to local and national initiatives whilst maintaining an excellent resource base and service for Loughborough students. I hope you will find this report interesting and inspiring reading. For further details please visit the Centre’s website mec.lboro.ac.uk. or contact the staff concerned, or me directly.

Tony Croft, Centre Director, August 2008 ([email protected])

The Centre, its Mission, Personnel and ManagementMission StatementThe Mission of the Mathematics Education Centre is to become an internationally recognised centre of excellence in the research into and practice of learning, teaching and support of mathematics and statistics in higher education.To achieve this it will:

M1 build upon its reputation, and the expertise of its staff in the education of students from a range of disciplines who need to study mathematics or statistics, by aspiring to research, develop and deliver teaching and support which is distinctive and of high quality;

M2 maintain oversight of the development and delivery by the School of Mathematics of an outstanding service teaching commitment to the Faculty of Engineering;

M3 maintain the high level of mathematics support for engineering undergraduates and develop further its mathematics support for other groups of students;

M4 continue to investigate practical and pedagogical aspects of learning mathematics, especially involving the introduction of emerging technologies and to disseminate expertise gained within the University and beyond;

M5 build upon the foundations of educational research laid since 2002 by developing an overt and rigorous research agenda which will provide a guiding force in the drive for excellence in learning, teaching and support, and which will achieve national pre-eminence in the field of mathematics education in the higher education sector;

M6 develop its provision of a statistical support service, which is currently open to all Loughborough postgraduate students and final year undergraduates, to include provision of support for academic staff;

M7 build upon its strength of research into, and delivery of mathematics support for, neuro-diverse students, through the Eureka Centre for Mathematical Confidence;

M8 remain at the forefront of, and contribute to, developments nationally in the teaching, learning and support of mathematics and statistics in higher education, and to continue to contribute to relevant national initiatives including those aimed at increasing the supply of mathematically-prepared students for STEM subjects;

M9 work with local schools and other organisations to develop community-university cooperation, to further mathematics education generally and to ensure a high profile presence of mathematics within local outreach activities.

Sixth Annual Stakeholders’ Report August 20082

Structure and Management of the Mathematics Education CentreAt its inception in 2002, the MEC was a Science Faculty Centre having strong ties with the Department of Mathematical Sciences and the Faculty of Engineering. On 1st August 2005, the Mathematics Education Centre combined with the Department of Mathematical Sciences to form the School of Mathematics. The work of the Centre has been guided by a Management Committee comprising senior members of staff from all three faculties of the University.

Membership of MEC Management Committee (2007-08):Dr Martin Harrison, Associate Dean (Teaching), Faculty of Science (Chair)Professor Ken Parsons, Dean, Faculty of ScienceProfessor Steve Rothberg, Dean, Faculty of EngineeringProfessor John Dickens, Associate Dean (Teaching), Faculty of EngineeringDr Paul Byrne, Associate Dean (Teaching), Faculty of SSHProfessor Tony Croft, Director, Mathematics Education CentreProfessor Chris Linton, Head, School of MathematicsDr Dave Coates, Business School

Mathematics Education Centre StaffProfessor Tony Croft (Director)Dr. Carol Robinson (Assistant Director – Teaching and Learning)Moira Petrie (Assistant Director – CETL)Dr Martin Harrison (Associate Dean – Teaching)Professor Barbara Jaworski (Professor of Mathematics Education)Dr Lara Alcock (Lecturer)Julie Armett (Receptionist/Secretary)Dr Rod Bond (Further Mathematics Network Centre Manager)Lesley Davis (University Teacher)Joan De-Souza (Secretary, Receptionist and Project Administrator)Dr Richard Gadsden (Lecturer)Harry Gordon (Mathematics Support Tutor)

Dr David Green (Visiting Fellow)Dr Rhian Green (Part-time Lecturer)Dr Mohammad Jaffar (Part-time Lecturer)Zakia Lashari (Receptionist /Secretary)Professor Duncan Lawson (CETL Professor of Mathematics Education)*Janette Matthews (Mathematics Support Tutor)Dr Leslie Mustoe (Senior Lecturer)Quang (Bob) Nguyen (Trainee Learning Technologist)Dr Aruna Palipana (Learning Technologist)Dr Glynis Perkin (Progression Project Officer)David Pidcock (HELM Project Manager & Lecturer)Barbara Rundle (Project Officer for Gifted and Talented Youth)Dr Peter Samuels (CETL Senior Research Fellow)*Nicola Timson (Mathematics Support Tutor)Clare Trott (Mathematics Support Tutor)Dr Joe Ward (Senior Lecturer)Clare Wright (Secretary, Receptionist and Project Administrator)* Based at Coventry University

Administrative and Computing SupportAdministration associated with teaching and examining is carried out by staff in the School of Mathematics under the direction of Mrs Jo Corlett. Dr Keith Watling manages and supports the Macintosh computers used by Centre staff. A service agreement with Computing Services ensures that staff and students using PCs in the Centre have access to the University network and relevant software.

Physical Location and Contact DetailsThere are now two Centres on campus. The Centre located in W1.42 in the Sir David Davies Building primarily supports engineering, mathematics and physics students. The new Centre in A039 in the Schofield Building supports students from the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities and some departments within the Faculty of Science. The Schofield Building is also the location for statistics support for all students and the Eureka Centre for Mathematical Confidence.

General enquiries can be made by contacting reception (01509 228250). Further details can be found on the web-site mec.lboro.ac.uk.

Sixth Annual Stakeholders’ Report August 2008 3

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FOOTPATH

The photo above shows the view from the footpath towards the Sir David Davies Building, if you were walking past David Collett Hall, The Keith Green Building and Burleigh Court.

The photo below shows entrance A of Sir David Davies Building (the main Physics entrance)

The glass entrance (photo below) leads straight into the Mathematics Learning Support Centre in Schofield Building.

Learning and TeachingIn 2007-8 the MEC was responsible for the delivery of 17 mathematics and statistics modules (235 credits) to Engineering undergraduates. This year, some new modules were introduced for students of Civil Engineering. Matlab, a computer algebra package used widely in industry, was introduced in their first year, first semester, mathematics module. MEC staff are keen to ensure that the syllabus they deliver is relevant to the engineers of the future. Staff in the MEC also taught on modules for Mathematics undergraduates and Science and Engineering Foundation Year students.

In the past year, MEC staff have integrated new technologies into the teaching of mathematics and statistics, where appropriate. Electronic voting systems have been used frequently in lectures with both first and second year engineering students. The top three benefits, identified by students, were:

Over 80% of students surveyed found the handsets “useful” or “very useful” and less than 5% found them ‘not at all useful’ or ‘not very useful’. Some staff have also introduced tablet PCs in lectures. This enables the lecturer to write with a special pen on the screen of the tablet. Any work done on the tablet is broadcast to the whole class. The tablet enables the lecturer to, inter alia, annotate notes, make comments and use colour schemes to highlight important points in a lecture. An additional feature allows lecturers to record their voices as they write on the tablet. After the lecture, the files are then saved and uploaded to the Learn server. Students find the facility to listen to the lecturer and simultaneously read the notes very helpful and it has been widely utilised, particularly during the examination revision periods.

“Checks whether I’m understanding course material as I thought I was”.

“Allows learners to identify problem areas”.

“Makes lectures more interactive”.

Mathematics Learning Support CentreThis year there has been a tremendous 41% increase in the number of visits to the Centre, compared to last year. Figure 1 compares the usage (cumulative number of visits) in both semesters over the last six years.

The usage includes visits to the West Park (WP) location, W1.42 (3969 visits), Central Park (CP) location, A0.39, (2287 visits) and the newly opened resource room for second and third year mathematics students, W1.45 (234 visits).

Table 1 on page 5 provides the number of students and visits by department, for this year (2007-8).

Figure 1 – Comparison of MLSC Usage, 2002-3, 2003-4, 2004-5, 2005-6, 2006-7 and 2007-8


Number of visits (cumulative) is shown.

Total Usage By Department – 2007-8Department Students Visits Percentage Percentage (Students) (Visits)Aeronautical and Automotive Engineering 81 165 5.59% 2.54%Business School 64 187 4.41% 2.88%Chemical Engineering 53 225 3.66% 3.47%Chemistry 33 76 2.28% 1.17%Civil and Building Engineering 99 310 6.83% 4.78%Computer Science 22 51 1.52% 0.79%Design and Technology 2 2 0.14% 0.03%Economics 105 373 7.24% 5.75%Electronic and Electrical Engineering 138 490 9.52% 7.55%English and Drama 1 1 0.07% 0.02%European and International Studies 7 7 0.48% 0.11%Geography 28 45 1.93% 0.69%Human Sciences 92 208 6.34% 3.20%I.P.T.M.E. 34 99 2.34% 1.53%Information Science 7 11 0.48% 0.17%Mathematical Sciences 338 2754 23.31% 42.43%Physics 108 776 7.45% 11.96%Social Sciences 16 57 1.10% 0.88%Sport and Exercise Sciences 24 41 1.66% 0.63%Wolfson School 197 612 13.59% 9.43%

Grand Total 1449 6490 100% 100 %Table 1 – Numbers of students and visits to the MLSC, 2007-8, grouped by department

As can be expected from the overall rise in student visits, there have been significant increases in the number of students from many departments. These include the Business School (up by 85 visits), Economics (up by 113 visits), Electrical and Electronic Engineering (up by 250 visits), Human Sciences (up by 129 visits), Physics (up by 420 visits) and Wolfson School (up by 229 visits).

Both WP and CP locations are open Monday to Friday, from 10 am to 5pm, throughout term-time and over the Special Assessment Period. Receptionists are on duty to welcome students and to offer general advice on facilities available. Teaching staff from the MEC and from the Department of Mathematical Sciences provide one-to-one help. Help with Mathematics is available at both locations. Statistics support is available in CP. Feedback from questionnaires has again indicated the value that students place on the one-to-one help. Many also commented favourably on the quiet study area available.

In response to the growing demand for one-to-one help, in 2008-9 we will be offering slightly more one-to-one Mathematics and Statistics support in CP and this will be spread over 5 days. Mathematics support will be provided every morning and Statistics support will be provided each afternoon. WP will continue to offer one-to-one Mathematics support each morning and afternoon.

Diagnostic testing of approximately one thousand incoming students took place again at the start of the academic year. The computer-based diagnostic testing system, introduced last year, continues to provide a quick turnaround in results for many students. Staff in the MLSC offer a mathematics/statistics diagnostic testing service to any department in the University. Visitors continue to come to the MLSC from all over the world to see the superb resources and learn about the running of a mathematics learning support centre. Visitors included David Willetts MP. Many return to set up support centres in their own institution. This includes a delegation from the University of North West Switzerland, who visited for 4 days in February and are now about to open their “Mathematik-Zentrum” in September 2008, the first mathematics support centre in Switzerland. Over the year, the Centre has again welcomed many hundred visitors on Open Days and UCAS visits.


Statistical Consultancy ServiceDuring both semesters this year Richard Buxton offered four hours consultancy in two two-hour slots and Richard Gadsden offered one two-hour slot. A new online booking system was used, allowing half-hour appointments to be booked. Out of semester, Richard Gadsden offered appointments subject to availability. Of the students seen, over half required only one appointment and the most appointments for one student were seven.

A summary table of this year’s appointments is given below. Like last year, the majority of those seen were final year undergraduates or PhD students, although the numbers of staff has increased to nine and of MSc students to thirteen. Again, coverage is University-wide with the range of statistics topics being broad.

Postgraduate Certificate in Mathematics Support for Students with Dyslexia and Dyscalculia in HE/FEIn summer 2008 the first cohort of students from the new postgraduate certificate course completed their studies and associated teaching practice. The course was set up in response to the high level of demand for specialist training in supporting dyslexic and dyscalculic students with the mathematical and statistical elements of their HE and FE courses. It is the first course of its kind designed to address this need. The course is jointly run by staff from the Centre for Additional Learning Support, which coordinates and provides innovative specialist support to students with specific learning difficulties, the Mathematics Education Centre, and the Eureka Centre for Mathematical Confidence. Further information about the Eureka Centre, and the Postgraduate Certificate can be obtained from Clare Trott ([email protected]). Some of the students who successfully

completed the postgraduate certificate with course tutors Jane Ellis, Janette Matthews, Clare Trott and Karisa Krcmar.


Number of appointments (number of students)Faculty Department Final year UG PG + staff 1 TotalEngineering Civil and Building Engineering 3 (2) 14 (8) 17 (10) Electronic and Electrical Engineering 0 1 (1) 1 (1) Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering 1 (1) 7 (6) 8 (7) Engineering Total 4 (3) 22 (15) 26 (18) SSH Business School 0 8 (4) 8 (4) Design and Technology 0 7(4) 7 (4) Economics 1 (1) 0 1 (1) Geography 18 (13) 6 (2) 24 (15) Sport and Exercise Sciences 3 (2) 14 (9) 17 (11) Social Science 24 (20) 4 (3) 28 (23) SSH Total 46 (36) 39 (22) 85 (58) Science Chemistry 0 5 (2) 5 (2) Computer Science 0 1 (1) 1 (1) Ergonomics and Safety Research Institute 0 17 (8) 17 (8) Human Science 7 (7) 23 (13) 30 (20) Information Science 3 (2) 37 (13) 40 (15) IPTME 0 5 (2) 5 (2) Mathematics 1 (1) 0 1 (1) Science Total 11 (10) 88 (39) 99 (49) TOTAL 61 (49) 149 (76) 210 (125)

Notes:1 The majority of these were PhD students – we saw nine members of staff and thirteen MSc students


SIGMAIn January 2005, HEFCE designated Loughborough University (through its Mathematics Education Centre) and Coventry University (through its Mathematics Support Centre) as a Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL).

Introductionsigma – Centre for Excellence in Mathematics and Statistics Support – continues to build upon the extensive experience and reputation of Loughborough and Coventry Universities in the support of thousands of undergraduate and postgraduate students, from across the full breadth of these universities, who require some knowledge of mathematical and/or statistical methods to fully engage with their programme of study.

sigma aims to:

l develop an environment in which it is the norm for all Loughborough and Coventry Universities’ students to expect to succeed, to rectify shortcomings and to build confidence in their ability to apply mathematics and statistics in their mainstream studies;

l research and promote enhancement of the teaching and learning of the mathematics and statistics taught throughout Loughborough University and Coventry University; and

l stimulate and encourage growth of similar proactive activity across the HE sector.

sigma is funded recurrently at £500,000 per annum until 2010 and in addition has received £2.35M of capital funding.

Activities Now that the capital works at Loughborough have been completed, sigma has been able to focus its full attention on engagement activities with staff and students. At Loughborough, these activities took a number of forms, a few being listed below.

Student AmbassadorsIn November 2007, the first set of student ambassadors were employed by sigma to assist in the promotion of the Mathematics Learning Support Centre (in both locations) and the Eureka Centre for Mathematical Confidence (in the Schofield Building). The six ambassadors came from six different departments, representing all three faculties across the University:

Carly Norris Electrical and Electronic Engineering Sergei Sellars Wolfson School Steven Brough IPTME Rachel Jenkins Chemical Engineering Karin Rosahl Physics Asma Hussain Social Psychology

The ambassadors provided valuable insight in terms of the promotion of the support on offer and how this is perceived by fellow students. As well as providing “shout-outs” in lectures and representations within their home departments, the ambassadors organised a series of information events in the Edward Herbert Building and the Library just before the Easter Break. They also wrote and produced a short promotional video that can be used in the coming academic year.

The ambassador scheme has been viewed as a success and will also run in Academic Session 2008/09 and we are hoping to attract more applicants from the Faculties of Science and Social Sciences and Humanities. Contact Glynis Perkin ([email protected]) for more information.


SIGMASecondments to sigmaAs part of its staff engagement activities, sigma is keen to develop work with academic staff interested in developing new and innovative approaches to teaching, including the development of mathematical or statistical resources that will prove beneficial to students or staff involved in mathematical support. At Loughborough, currently there are two members of staff who have taken up secondment opportunities with sigma.

Oliver Daddow (PIRES) Oliver is a Lecturer in Politics/International Relations in the Department of Politics, International Relations and European Studies (PIRES). The key goal of his secondment is to develop new materials to aid the delivery and assessment of the quantitative methods segment of the PIRES Year 2 core module, Political Analysis.

Ginny Franklin (Library) Working as Academic Librarian for Chemistry, Computer Science, IPTME, Ginny is keen to evaluate different methods of providing study skills support to students. Her secondment with sigma involves the development of audio podcasts specifically related to study skills topics and investigations on the best technologies to use to develop such podcasts.

It is our intention to continue to offer secondment opportunities throughout the coming year.

Technology Evaluation ProjectLast year, sigma funded a number of projects whose aim was to introduce or enhance the use of technologies in the teaching of mathematics, statistics or numeracy. At Loughborough, Paula Griffiths, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Human Sciences, teaches basic statistics to first and second year Human Sciences students. Paula successfully bid for funding for an interactive panel and Bluetooth writing tablets. These are being trialled as a method of encouraging greater student interaction in the classes as well as enabling the development of concepts and ideas in relation to the feedback received from students in the lecture/ tutorial setting.

Linking with engCETLsigma continues to enjoy strong links with engCETL, the Engineering Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning located in the Faculty of Engineering at Loughborough University. Together, we are part of the East Midlands CETL Network, which organised this year’s National CETL Network Conference at the University of Leicester in April. In addition, we held a joint Student Conference where all the PhD students from both CETLs were invited to present posters of their research and were encouraged to interact and share their experiences of conducting research, with the intention that this opportunity would foster alliances between students. The submitted posters were entered into a competition and Sam King, a PhD student from the MEC was awarded first prize.

Innovative Uses of TechnologyInvestigations into the use of new and emerging technologies for mathematics and statistics support continue apace.

Embracing MOODLELoughborough University recently upgraded its Virtual Learning Environment to incorporate the open source course management system known as MOODLE. The School of Mathematics has been included in the pilot phase of this implementation and this has enabled some MEC staff to investigate opportunities to develop and promulgate additional learning resources for the benefit of our Engineering students. MEC lecturer, Dave Pidcock, identified two MOODLE features of particular interest, namely:

l Quiz facilityl Podcasting

QuizAs part of its service teaching, the MEC encourages students to learn and practice their mathematics by the incorporation of formative and summative testing at regular intervals throughout the course. MOODLE’s built in Quiz facility was used this year to facilitate this objective. In practice, short tests of 5 questions were delivered. Individual questions were sometimes on different aspects of the same topic, or occasionally for revision, on different topics.

Over a 20 week period 10 such tests were scheduled. On completion of each test, students were made aware of their final score, and at the conclusion of the testing period were able to revisit their test and see detailed feedback, in the form of specific solutions, to the questions that they had attempted.

By presenting frequent short tests, focussed on recent material, with the opportunity for students to correct themselves within a test and to improve their mark by attempting tests again, it was hoped that students would not feel intimidated by the test procedure, but use it as an opportunity to improve their understanding – and their coursework marks! A rigorous analysis has not yet been carried out of student responses, but the initial impression was that some students did take tests on more than one occasion even when their initial mark was high, which suggests that they may have found the test useful in developing their mastery of the material.

Student Feedback

“…MOODLE tests give us a chance to test our knowledge so we can see clearly what we don’t understand.”

“We do lots of tests to keep up to date –

we do not have regular tests in other modules.”

PodcastingFor students with access to computers and mp3 players with video capability, the built-in podcasting facility within MOODLE presented the opportunity of making instructional materials available via an alternative route.

Once the original source material has been created, MOODLE enables the lecturer to create and later update a video podcast from within the student module, while allowing the student to either directly display such video files on their computer or choose to subscribe to the podcast and view files at a later date.

So far five such videos, optimised for iPod display, have been created, and more are planned. By keeping the duration to just a few minutes, it is hoped that the student will not find it burdensome to review the material on a frequent basis. The short duration and optimisation process also ensures that the file to be downloaded is only of the order of 2-3 MB and consequently is unlikely to cause problems when downloading.

Assistive TechnologiesClare Trott’s work on development of a screening tool for dyscalculia in students has concluded and negotiations with a publisher have begun. In December 2007 Clare undertook a research project looking into ways in which tablet PC’s can be used to support mathematics and engineering students who have dyslexia. Findings emerging from this project will be of interest to those working with students who are dyslexic. For further details of this project contact Clare ([email protected]).



OutreachFurther Mathematics NetworkThe Mathematics Education Centre is the fund-holder for the North Leicestershire and South Nottinghamshire Further Mathematics Centres. Our area covers schools and colleges to the north of Leicester, the City of Nottingham and the lower part of Nottinghamshire. Both Centres are supported by enthusiastic management groups which bring together teachers, academics, Mathematics consultants, personnel from industry/commerce and students.

AS and A2 Further Mathematics courses for Key Stage 5 students are taught at the universities at Loughborough and Nottingham and also in schools and colleges depending upon the needs of students. Input from Centre managers working with teachers has helped with their professional development. The academic achievement of the students has been pleasing.

The Centres are very much involved with promoting Mathematics to Key Stages 4 and 5 students through a variety of activities including University experience days, A/A* GCSE revision days, mechanics workshops, maths at work conferences and much more.

For some of these activities we have worked with education staff from Snibston Discovery Park at Coalville near Leicester. We are grateful to the School of Mathematics at Loughborough University and the Discovery Park for provision of funds for these and we see this as an excellent way of forging links between the University and the local community.

NCETM ProjectWe have been successful in obtaining a grant of £25000 from the NCETM to carry out research into how teachers can enthuse able year 11 students to enjoy Mathematics and thereafter to continue with this subject at A level and beyond. Teachers from four schools/colleges are involved and the work will be completed by December 2009.

Packaging ProjectA former university student who is now a successful businessman has awarded the Mathematics Education Centre funding for the next three years to develop curriculum resources aimed at motivating Key Stages 3/4 students. We hope to work closely with the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining in a project involving packaging which will relate well to the Shape and Space section of the GCSE curriculum.

Nuffield Science BursaryWe are also exploring ways in which the use of Lego Mindstorm Robots can be used to support the Mathematics curriculum. Development work is taking place in Summer 2008 by two students from Longslade Community College who are funded by Nuffield Bursaries.

For further information please contact Rod Bond ([email protected]) or Barbara Rundle ([email protected]).

A student from De Lisle Catholic Science College receives an award from the MEC’s Dr. Rod Bond. This was for excellent effort, attitude and progress with her A level Further Mathematics studies.

Measurements, accuracy, errors with chemist Dr Steve St- Gallay from AstraZeneca.

Nuffield Bursary students from Longslade Community College,Kieran Mistry and Shannon Stodd working on the mathematics of robots.


Research2007/8 has been a productive year in research terms. The MEC gained two new researchers, Lara Alcock and Barbara Jaworski. Barbara’s post was the first professorial appointment to the MEC. We also attracted two new PhD students, Sam King and Anthony Edwards, supervised by Carol Robinson and Lara Alcock respectively, and a little later, they were joined by Stephanie Thomas, supervised by Barbara Jaworski.

In the early part of the year, we were heavily involved in making a submission to the Research Assessment Exercise. This was our first such submission. As it is yet early days for the research profile of the MEC, it was a big task to ensure the strongest profile we could assemble. The MEC is unique in being a mathematics education centre within a school of mathematics. We thus had to make our submission to the education subpanel rather than the mathematics subpanel. We are the only group in Loughborough University making a submission to the education panel and we wait with considerable interest to find out how they have rated us.

Individual members of the MEC have continued in their own research areas to attend conferences and give presentations, submit research proposals, publish papers and receive invitations. Here are just some examples:

l Carol Robinson was invited to give the Opening Keynote Address at the Aplimat 2008 conference in Bratislava, Slovakia, Feb 2008.

l Barbara Jaworski attended the American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference in New York in April 2008, giving a paper in a symposium on teacher education and acting as discussant in a further symposium on research collaborations between academics and teachers;

l Martin Harrison went to the AMSI (Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute) National Symposium on Mathematics Education for 21st Century Engineering Students in December 2007 and presented the following keynote paper “Providing real service to engineering students studying mathematics”

l Barbara Jaworski was invited to give the keynote address at a conference in mathematics education held at the University of Athens in June, 2008.

l Sam King and Barbara Jaworski received funding from the London Mathematical Society to attend the 11th International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME) in Monterrey, Mexico in July 2008. Sam had an accepted poster presentation focusing on his first year of research; Barbara an invited regular lecture and the leading paper in a working group on teacher professional development

l Martin Harrison, Carol Robinson and their former PhD student Stephen Lee were invited to present the main findings from their research into the teaching of mechanics at a Mechanics Symposium, held at Cambridge University in July 2008. Its purpose was to examine the teaching of mechanics at the school/university interface and produce recommendations on the way forward.

l Lara Alcock and Anthony Edwards had a paper accepted for presentation at the PME 32 conference in Morelia, Mexico in July 2008 based on their work on university mathematics students’ use of examples.

l Rod Bond presented papers at the MEI, ATM and MA annual conferences on the topic of “How can we inspire and enthuse young people to study Mathematics?”.

l Barbara Jaworski gave the first keynote presentation of the MSOR/CETL conference held at the University of Birmingham in September, 2007.

Research student Ria Symonds is nearing the end of her PhD and has been conducting research into the engagement of students with mathematics support initiatives. She has presented her work at several international conferences.

Barbara Jaworski has completed the editing of two volumes of papers, now published, the first is Volume 4 of the first International Handbook of Mathematics Teacher Education; the second is a major section of the study volume from ICMI Study 15, The Professional Learning and Development of Teachers of Mathematics.

Both the RAE and ESRC funding round exercises have challenged us to be clearer about the MEC’s research profile. At one level we are a group that includes several independent researchers, all researching and publishing in diverse areas of mathematics education, albeit linked to research in learning and teaching at university level. This continues, and some details of individual activity are mentioned above. A challenge now is to develop a critical mass of academic staff working on coherent projects designed to consolidate the reputation of the MEC as a leader in mathematics education within the higher education sector.

During the year, MEC Director Tony Croft has been promoted to a well deserved professorship and we have attracted a research active new lecturer, Matthew Inglis. This means we now have a substantial group, both in terms of the number of research active colleagues and weight of distinction. Thus our challenge for the coming year is to establish ourselves firmly as leaders of research in the area of university mathematics learning and teaching.

Professor Barbara Jaworski


Grants and AwardsNational Teaching FellowshipIn July 2008 Professor Tony Croft was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship in recognition of a sustained and excellent contribution to mathematics education. Tony will attend a special celebration event in September in London where he will receive £10,000 as part of the fellowship. This can be used for personal development in learning and teaching.

Loughborough University Academic Practice Awards:This year, two members of MEC staff were awarded Academic Practice Awards, worth £5,000 each.

Dr Carol RobinsonEngaging students through e-learning using Electronic Voting Systems (EVS)

This is a research-based project to investigate how to challenge students understanding of the underlying principles by using appropriate mathematics questions which test key concepts and encourage deep learning. ‘ConcepTests’ have been used with much success in a number of universities. As part of the project, Carol will visit experts at the Universities of Arizona, Strathclyde and Glasgow. The lessons learned from these visits will be shared with staff at Loughborough University through a newly formed support group for staff. This was set up at the start of the project and will meet four times during the one-year duration of the project.

Dr Lara AlcockLara Alcock was awarded a £5000 Academic Practice Award for a project entitled “e-Proofs: Online resources to aid understanding of mathematical proofs”. The objective of this project is to develop e-Proofs for each of eight major theorems from the module MAB141 Analysis. These e-Proofs will take the form of interactive “movies” that students can download from the Learn server, and will have three components, each with verbal commentary:

Component 1: A standard proof is written down with explanation in the usual way.

Component 2: A line-by-line check in which each line of the proof is highlighted in turn, and arrows or boxes of further explanation indicate why this line is valid (by referring to assumptions in the theorem statement or earlier lines in the proof, by invoking a known theorem etc.)

Component 3: A structural discussion in which large sections of the proof are highlighted, described and related to each other in order to facilitate recognition of the large-scale structure of the proof and its relationship to the theorem.

Honorary Degree for Professor Celia HoylesOn 17th July 2008 Professor Celia Hoyles, OBE, was awarded the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa, in acknowledgement and celebration of her contribution to revitalising the health of mathematics education. Celia gained a first class honours degree in mathematics and was awarded the Dalton prize at the University of Manchester. She has a masters degree and doctorate in mathematics education. Since 1984 she has been Professor of Mathematics Education at the Institute of Education, University of London. In 2004 she was appointed to the role of Chief Advisor for Mathematics at the then Department for Education and Skills. In that role she was a champion for mathematics, taking an interest in mathematics education from early years, through schools, into further and higher education and thereafter in the workplace.

In 2007 she became Director of the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. As a former chair of the Joint Mathematical Council of the United Kingdom and as a member of the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education,

she has provided a voice for the mathematics community in its communications with government. In her speech at the awarding ceremony Professor Hoyles gave a warm tribute to the work of the Mathematics Learning Support Centre at Loughborough.

Professor Celia Hoyles with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Shirley Pearce, and the Chancellor, Sir John Jennings at the award ceremony.


Retirement of Dr Leslie MustoeOn 31st December 2007 Dr Leslie Mustoe retired from full time teaching at the University. Les joined Loughborough in September 1969 and throughout all his time here taught mathematics to Civil Engineering undergraduates. In 1991 he became the first Director of the Science and Engineering Foundation Studies Programme (SEFS), teaching mathematics to these students too. During his career he authored eight textbooks on undergraduate engineering mathematics and has lectured extensively abroad. In 2004 he was awarded the University Medal for long service to Loughborough University. In 2007 Les was made an Honorary Fellow of SEFI (European Society for Engineering Education) for his services to the mathematical education of engineers throughout Europe. In the same year, Loughborough Students Union named him Lecturer of the Year. Most recently he has been active nationally in the development of the Advanced Engineering Diploma; the mathematics syllabus for this is based on the SEFS mathematics modules that he developed. In retirement, Les will continue to play a role in the Mathematics Education Centre as he has been appointed Visiting Fellow. He will contribute to the teaching of mathematics on the SEFS Programme.

All staff in the Mathematics Education Centre wish Les well in his retirement.

Dr Leslie Mustoe

IMA/MEE 6th Conference andSEFI-MWG 14th European Seminar 2008A unique event in engineering mathematics education took place in the Mathematics Education Centre between 6th and 9th April. The Institute of Mathematics & its Applications and the Mathematics Working Group of SEFI (SEFI-MWG) collaborated to hold a joint meeting of over 90 delegates, from 15 different countries. There were keynote lectures, short talks, posters and group discussion sessions. The latter discussed Active Learning and The Major Problems facing Engineering Mathematics Education in Europe.

The decline in mathematical preparedness of fresher students was first observed seriously in the UK as earlyas the 1980s but by the mid 1990s this had become chronic. By contrast no such major decline was noted in continental Europe but since the 1990s, not only Europe, but much of the rest of the world has been experiencing major deficiencies in mathematics in the backgrounds of students entering degree programmes in which mathematics plays a significant part. The underlying reasons are complex and deserve further study, but there is a growing view that social and cultural evolution may be behind this as are changes and pressures on the school curriculum. The capacity of students to absorb and reflect is diminished, and the learning of mathematics depends much upon such skill.

The engineering mathematics education discussion groups took stock of the knowledge deficiency of students and those on active learning examined strategies by which by individual and group activity might optimise the efficiency and effectiveness of learning mathematics within the limited time given to it.

By Dr. Michael Barry, University of Bristol

Mathematics Education Centre Mathematics Education CentreLoughborough University Leicestershire LE11 3TU

Tel: 01509 228250 Fax: 01509 228211Email: [email protected] Web: mec.lboro.ac.uk 36

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