Maths Week 2022 has been launched by Minister for Education Norma Foley with this year’s festival of maths and numeracy kicking off on 15 October.
Now in its 17th year, Maths Week is designed to promote a positive attitude towards maths across the country.
Last year over 400,000 people, including 386,000 students, participated in the week, and this year promises to be as popular as ever with already over 142,000 pupils signed up to take part.
More than 60 organisations including the universities, institutes of technology, libraries, schools, training colleges and employers have also registered.
After two years online, Maths Week will be returning to classrooms, museums, universities, theatres, libraries, and auditoriums across the island of Ireland, from Ballinasloe to Ballymena.
Such was the success of the online events, ‘Maths Week Covid Editions,’ a number of online events are also programmed, to make the event as accessible as possible.
‘MathsWeekTV’ is scheduled to broadcast daily shows online for primary and secondary schools across the island.
It will feature well known presenters such as UK TV presenter and maths teacher Bobby Seagull and children’s author and maths teacher Sally Lunt.
Presenters from north and south will be joined by presenters from Britain, France, Spain, Catalonia, USA, South Africa.
Cross-border participation is a very important element of the festival with schools from both sides of the border connecting with fun maths activities.
Minister Norma Foley said that Maths Week is an integral part of the school calendar, and that she is delighted her Department is supporting the initiative once again.
“It is wonderful to see children growing in confidence and enjoying all the satisfaction and indeed fun that they derive from great maths teaching and learning.
“Maths is both an essential life skill, and a driver of the skills and innovation that we want our students to experience in their education. This is also a key element of a successful, vibrant, competitive, and growing economy.
“It helps us to learn and think creatively and critically. Maths Week brings numbers to life. It promotes a positive attitude towards maths in our learners that can contribute to their future success in and out of school.”
Eoin Gill, Maths Week Ireland Co-Ordinator, said that as schools return to normality after two years of disruption due to Covid, it is more important than ever to motivate and inspire young people with maths.
“Mathematical thinking is part of everyday life, and we know that a positive attitude helps us succeed in a subject.
“The success of Maths Week in recent years has demonstrated the popularity of the subject and how maths can be enjoyed in so many different ways.”
Full programme and details of how to get involved are available on the Maths Week website www.mathsweek.ie.
