Celebrate Pi Day!
Pi, Greek letter (), is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi Day is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th. Pi = 3.1415926535…

With the use of computers, Pi has been calculated to over 1 trillion digits past the decimal. Pi is an irrational number meaning it will continue infinitely without repeating. The symbol for pi was first used in 1706 by William Jones, but was popular after it was adopted by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in 1737.

Pi Day website http://www.piday.org/

World Maths Day 3 March 2010
Students play at home and at school against other students around the world in live games of mental arithmetic. Each game lasts for 60 seconds and students can play up to 500 games, earning points for each correct answer. The students who answer the most questions appear in the Hall of Fame. Students cannot select their level but will move up as they progress.

This year features an exciting new format with multi-levels for all age groups.
Teachers, parents and media are invited to participate for the first time.
Can we beat last year's world record of 2 million students from 204 countries correctly answering 452,681,681 questions?

Details on how to take part can be found at http://www.worldmathsday.com/2010

Bath Taps Into Science
Bath Taps into Science is an annual Science Fair held in Bath. This year the event will be held on Friday 12th March (11am - 3pm) 2010 at the University of Bath and Saturday 13th March 2010 (10am - 4pm) at Green Park Station in Bath. There will be lots of exciting activities including a slime Stall, Lego robotics, making bubbles, a liquid nitrogen show, maths puzzles and lots, lots more.

Further information can be found at http://www.bath.ac.uk/math-sci/bath-taps

Maths Inspiration - 2009/10 Programme
The spring programme of Maths Inspiration has now been published. Details at: www.mathsinspiration.com/events.html

Details of the shows and how to book are on the website.

ACME
Post 16 Mathematical Pathways Paper
ACME has published a paper to provoke discussion about proposals that all post-16 learners in England should study mathematics. A copy of the paper can be downloaded from the ACME website. Please feed in your views to ACME at acme@royalsociety.org before Friday 18 December 2009.

2009 Conference Summary Report
In March 2009, ACME held a conference at the Royal Society on The Future of Mathematics in Schools and Colleges - A policy perspective. The conference summary report has now been published and is available from http://www.acme-uk.org/news.asp?id=148.

GCSE Mathematics Linked Pair Pilot
Details about the pilot GCSE mathematics qualifications for September 2010 can be found on the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency's (QCDA) website, http://www.qcda.gov.uk/24956.aspx

Mangahigh Launches First Curriculum-Compliant Online Maths Games
London, UK: 24 September 2009 – Against a backdrop of UK maths standards falling to an all-time low (UK students now rank only 24th in maths proficiency, according to the PISA international league table), Mangahigh (www.mangahigh.com) today launches the first curriculum-compliant, games-based learning site focusing on maths for secondary school students. Mangahigh is led by Dr. Marcus du Sautoy (maths professor at the University of Oxford and Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science) and Toby Rowland (co-founder of King.com, one of the world’s largest casual games companies), who have teamed up to improve children’s maths ability.

A Level Mathematics & Further Mathematics - An investigation into the reasons for increased uptake in 2009
A paper has been written following the completion of the Maths Uptake survey recently run by the Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI). A copy of the paper can be found here at http://www.mei.org.uk/files/pdf/A_Level_uptake.pdf.

IMA Position Statement on Awarding Bodies and Teaching Resources
The IMA is concerned about developments in the market for textbooks and other teaching resources for courses preparatory to public examinations which it believes to be detrimental to the public good. [Statement pdf]

Keep maths textbooks independent of examining boards
Maths teachers are feeling increasingly obliged to buy textbooks and other teaching resources endorsed by examining boards and written by examiners, fearing that their pupils would be disadvantaged if they did not, according to a statement by the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications. [Press Release pdf]

Advanced level Diploma in Science - Have your say
The Diploma in Science is an exciting new qualification aimed at 14-19 year olds. The Foundation and Higher levels will launch in September 2011 and the Advanced level in September 2012. It will provide students with a combination of essential science knowledge and skills that employers and education look for.

To find out more about the Diploma in Science visit www.sciencediploma.co.uk

The Diploma in Science is still in development; if you would like to help shape this new qualification, click here to register to attend a focus group.

Find out about the big changes in GCSE Mathematics
In January 2010, AQA are launching their new GCSE Mathematics specification for first teaching in September 2010. Changes to their specification include a greater emphasis on problem solving and applying mathematics. To understand these changes and hear back from the pilot centres, have a look at AQA's short leaflet: Your guide to the BIG changes in Maths.

There is also a Maths Resource Zone which includes:
                                                                                draft specification
                                                                                draft specification summary leaflet
                                                                                draft specimen papers and mark schemes

New resources will be added to the Resource Zone over the coming months.

Mathematics Development Programme for Teachers (MDPT): a national CPD programme for non-specialist teachers of mathematics
From summer 2009, the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) will be recruiting participants for the Mathematics Development Programme for Teachers (MDPT). This is a national CPD programme to support increase the number of specialist teachers of mathematics.

The courses will develop participants’ subject and pedagogical knowledge and enable teachers without a first degree or secondary initial teacher training (ITT) specialism to teach the subject more effectively, to learners aged 11-19 with more confidence, expertise and enthusiasm.

The structure and length will be flexible to reflect the needs of individual participants and comprise a mix of tuition and in-school development. The course will start in summer and run for 40 days over the following academic year. The courses are free for participants and the TDA will fund supply cover for participating schools. Teachers who meet the eligibility criteria and complete the course will receive a £5,000 incentive on completion of their course.

Participants should ideally have at least one year’s experience of teaching mathematics, for some of their timetable.

For further details on the MDPT, including a list of providers, visit:www.tda.gov.uk/mathscpdcourse.

Alternatively contact Anthony Howells at Anthony.howells@tda.gov.uk for more information.

Millennium Mathematics Project's public lectures
Global Warming and the Melting of the Arctic Ice
(http://www.mmp.maths.org.uk/node/118)

Date: Wednesday, 24 February 2010 - 5:00pm - 6:00pm
Location: Centre for Mathematical Sciences, Clarkson Road, Cambridge
Speaker: Professor Peter Wadhams

The Arctic sea ice has been retreating and thinning for many decades under the influence of global warming, but in the summer 2007 the extent made a huge step downwards which led some scientists to predict that the summer ice would be gone in 5 years (since modified to 20-30). This is a massive change with huge implications for the climate, and it seems to be brought about mainly by the thinning, which allows the summer melt to get rid of the ice altogether. To measure the thickeness in winter and summer we have been working with Royal Navy submarines, sailing under the ice with upwards looking sonars, since 1971. Recently we have been using multibeam sonars which give full 3-D view of the ice underside.

Professor Wadhams will discuss in his talk how these data are collected, how they are analysed, and how they are interpreted to give scientists key parameters which are needed to understand the decay rate of the ice.

Level: General public
Suggested age range 15+

Admission to the lecture is free and no ticket required – for more information please contact Kerstin Enright, Millennium Mathematics Project, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, Wilberforce Road, Cambridge, CB3 0WA (01223 766839) or email: mmptalks@hermes.cam.ac.uk

To view the full lecture listings or to register for an events e-mail list, visit: http://www.mmp.maths.org/events/eventlist.php