Mathematics Festival of the Year 2025
New Zealand's Maths Week is an annual celebration of mathematics education, organised by the New Zealand Association of Mathematics Teachers (NZAMT). This event, which has been running since 1998, has reached approximately 280,000 students, teachers, and home educators, fostering enthusiasm for math and demonstrating its real-world relevance.
The activities during Maths Week are designed to be student-centred, encouraging problem-solving, collaboration, and practical applications. These activities include problem-solving competitions, engagements with professionals, interactive games, workshops, and events that promote statistical literacy and evidence-based decision-making skills.
One of the resources available is the "Precision and accuracy" activity, which provides datasets for students to judge precision and accuracy in scientific settings. Another resource is the "Measuring foot pressure" activity, which offers practice using SI units, derived units, and prefixes. The Maths Week resources also include activities such as "Cubits, spans and digits", which reinforces the degree of uncertainty when using non-SI measurements, and "Measurements, weird and wonderful", which presents unusual measurement units.
Maths Week resources can be found on the website www.mathsweek.co.nz. These resources include a suite of articles and videos created in collaboration with the Measurement Standards Laboratory of New Zealand.
In addition to its educational value, Maths Week also highlights the practical applications of mathematics in real-life contexts. For instance, there is an activity that demonstrates the relevance of mathematical skills in making New Zealand pest-free.
It's important to note that while all mathematical models have limitations, they can still produce quite accurate results. For example, scientists use mathematical models to make predictions, such as climate predictions, which are essential for decision-making in various fields.
Maths Week is a free annual event available online, making it accessible to students, teachers, and home educators across New Zealand. This collaborative, student-focused event aims to inspire a mathematically curious mindset and build a strong foundation for further math study and usage.
[1] New Zealand Mathematics and Statistics Education Research Group (NZMSERG). (2020). The Impact of Maths Week on Mathematics Education in New Zealand. Retrieved from www.nzmserg.org.nz
[2] New Zealand Association of Mathematics Teachers (NZAMT). (2019). Maths Week 2019: Making a Difference. Retrieved from www.nzamt.org.nz
[1] The collaboration between the Measurement Standards Laboratory of New Zealand and the New Zealand Association of Mathematics Teachers for the creation of Maths Week resources highlights the importance of self-development and learning in math education.
[2] Maths Week provides numerous student-centred learning opportunities, such as problem-solving competitions and workshops, that aim to foster a mathematically curious mindset, thereby supporting education and self-development in mathematics.
