UCC Hosted the Award for Irish Teachers of Mathematics & Ireland’s 30 years of participation in the International Mathematical Olympiad on Saturday May 26th. The Irish Mathematical Trust gratefully acknowledges the support of the Frank Kenny Fund at The Community Foundation for Ireland in funding the Award and the Olympiad for a five year period. The donor has supported the Award on the basis of a lifelong interest in mathematics and a belief in the need to recognise excellence in teaching. The 2017-2018 award is also generously supported by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) through its SFI Discover programme.
Strong mathematics skills are a critical factor for the future development of the economy, and teachers are in the front-line of fostering such skills among the young. The Award for Irish Teachers of Mathematics mirrors a number of similar initiatives in other countries, in particular the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences’ Teachers Prize in mathematics and science, and the US -based Rosenthal Prize for Innovation and Inspiration in Math Teaching. The award has been developed to recognise the outstanding achievements and significant contributions to the mathematical education of secondary school teachers throughout the Republic of Ireland. Professional expertise in the subject of Mathematics, effective teaching practices, care for students' development and contributions to the community have all been taken into consideration when deliberating for this award. The prize comes with awards of €10,000 for the winner and €2,000 for the runner-up who will be announced at the ceremony. The award is administered by the Irish Mathematical Trust, an organisation of mathematicians from among all major third level institutions, committed to the development of Mathematics Education at all levels. The Royal Irish Academy has nominated a member to the jury, to help ensure the integrity of the process.
With the support of the Department of Education and Skills and of the Royal Irish Academy, the Irish Mathematical Trust organises Ireland's participation in the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), the world's annual mathematics championship for school students. Ireland started participating in 1988 and has sent a team every year after that, bringing home a total of 10 medals and 41 honourable mentions. Of these, the most successful participation was also the most recent at the 58th International Mathematical Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro in 2017, which recorded 2 bronze medals and 4 honourable mentions for team Ireland, and the highest team score in 30 years. In recent years, a special effort has gone into encouraging young female students to develop their mathematical potential, through participation in events like the European Girls Mathematical Olympiad, where team Ireland earned 3 silver and 2 bronze medals since 2015. Generous funding from the SFI Discover programme and Smart Futures led to an increase in the numbers and a decrease in the age from which children become interested in mathematics and ready for mathematical Olympiad participation. Support by the Frank Kenny Fund at the Community Foundation for Ireland helps reward, motivate and train such students.
By hosting summer training camps and supporting other coaching activities, UCC has contributed significantly to all the above activities, which makes it uniquely fit for the purpose of hosting this anniversary celebration. The celebration will include short artistic moments by award winning young musician-- mathematicians Antonia Huang, Cillian Williamson, and Kevin Jansson playing piano, and Alison Riordan on double bass with accompaniment by Saoirse Lonergan.
To see more about the awards and to view all the winners click here.