The inaugural Oundle Mathematics Enrichment Conference (OMEC) event was hosted in Oundle School’s recently extended SciTec building this summer and attracted over eighty pupils from eleven local schools.
The event was aimed at the most capable mathematicians in Years 9 and 10 and sought to extend the mathematical experience of all participants. Alongside the pupil seminars, the twenty visiting teachers met together for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training sessions presented by Douglas Butler (creator of the Autograph software) and Mo Ladak (Head of Teaching and Learning at Thomas Deacon Academy) on topics including ‘Getting the Best from Dynamic Software’ and ‘Common Misconceptions at GCSE’.
Pupils participated in three seminars covering topics in Modular Arithmetic, Prime Numbers and Similarity. All topics built on knowledge that pupils would have from their school experience but extended their use into more challenging contexts. The afternoon session was a Mathematical Treasure Hunt which took place in the grounds of SciTec and was hotly contested between the teams and was enjoyed by many teachers too!
Oundle’s Head of Community Partnerships, Gordon Montgomery commented, “It was tremendous to see so many schools represented and the very strong mathematicians that they bring. We hope that Oundle will be able to host more such events and are grateful to our partners at Thomas Deacon Academy for supporting the delivery of CPD training sessions. It helps to be able to offer something for teachers to benefit from as well as the pupils.”
Head, Sarah Kerr-Dineen added, “I am delighted by the success of this inaugural conference and excited by the learning and partnership opportunities it opens up now and into the future.”
Quotes from participants:
“Pupils loved the session on arty maths and have delivered a session in school on it. To be honest we thought the event was brilliant!” – Ben Johnson, Brooke Weston Academy
“Our students were buzzing – all the way home!” – Mo Ladak, Thomas Deacon Academy
SciTec is an award winning and ground-breaking science complex which unites the subjects of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and aims to provide ‘practical hands-on experience’, with Oundle’s pupils able to move seamlessly from theory to practice and from pure science to the achievement of workable technology. A working link with Imperial College, London will use the Oundle facilities as a regional hub for future STEM activities with local schools. The engagement of research scientists to work alongside teachers underscores the facility’s status as a beacon for the teaching of Science and Engineering.
Oundle School Mathematics Department will run a similar mathematics event for Years 7 and 8 pupils on Thursday 16th November and for Years 5 and 6 pupils on Tuesday 23rd January in addition to OMEC 2018 which will take place in early July.
To receive further details or join our mailing list please contact rgm@oundleschool.org.uk