Mathematical Association

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The Mathematical Association
Mathematical Association Achievement.png
AbbreviationMA
Formation1871
Legal statusNon-profit organisation and registered charity
PurposeProfessional organisation for mathematics educators
Location
  • 259 London Road, Leicester, LE2 3BE
Region served
UK
Main organ
MA Council President – Hannah Fry (2020-2021)
Websitehttps://www.m-a.org.uk

The Mathematical Association is a professional society concerned with mathematics education in the UK.

History[]

It was founded in 1871 as the Association for the Improvement of Geometrical Teaching and renamed to the Mathematical Association in 1894.[1][2] It was the first teachers' subject organisation formed in England. In March 1927, it held a three-day meeting in Grantham to commemorate the bicentenary of the death of Sir Isaac Newton, attended by Sir J. J. Thomson (discoverer of the electron), Sir Frank Watson Dyson – the Astronomer Royal, Sir Horace Lamb, and G. H. Hardy.

In the 1960s, when comprehensive education was being introduced, the Association was in favour of the 11-plus system. For maths teachers training at university, a teaching award that was examined was the , later known as the Diploma in Mathematical Education of the Mathematical Association.

Function[]

It exists to "bring about improvements in the teaching of mathematics and its applications, and to provide a means of communication among students and teachers of mathematics".[3] Since 1894 it has published The Mathematical Gazette. It is one of the participating bodies in the quadrennial British Congress of Mathematics Education, organised by the Joint Mathematical Council, and it holds its annual general meeting as part of the Congress.[4]

Structure[]

It is based in the south-east of Leicester on London Road (A6), just south of the Charles Frears campus of De Montfort University.

Aside from the Council, it has seven other specialist committees.

Regions[]

Its branches are sometimes shared with the Association of Teachers of Mathematics (ATM):

  • Birmingham
  • Cambridge
  • East Midlands
  • Exeter
  • Gloucester
  • Liverpool
  • London
  • Greater Manchester
  • Meridian
  • Stoke and Staffordshire
  • Sheffield
  • Sussex
  • Yorkshire

Past presidents[]

Past presidents of The Association for the Improvement of Geometrical Teaching included:

Past presidents of The Mathematical Association have included:

Arms[]

Coat of arms of Mathematical Association hide
Adopted
Granted 1st June 1965 [7]
Crest
On a wreath of the colours a dexter hand couped at the wrist holding a crystal cylinder enclosing a like sphere all Proper.
Escutcheon
Azure a representation of a pentagon with diagonals Or on a chief Argent an open book Proper inscribed with the Greek letters Pi and Epsilon Sable and edged and clasped Or.
Motto
Tibi Creditum Debes

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Orton, Anthony (2004). Learning Mathematics: Issues, Theory and Classroom Practice. A&C Black. p. 181. ISBN 0826471137.
  2. ^ Flood, Raymond; Rice, Adrian; Wilson, Robin, eds. (2011). Mathematics in Victorian Britain. Oxford University Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-19-162794-1.
  3. ^ The Mathematical Association — supporting mathematics in education
  4. ^ BMCE Handbook, accessed 2018-10-09
  5. ^ "Court Circular". The Times (36051). London. 29 January 1900. p. 9.
  6. ^ MA presidents have served 1 year terms, starting with Neville.
  7. ^ "Mathematical Association". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  • Siddons, A. W. (1939). "The Mathematical Association—I". Eureka. 1: 13–15.
  • Siddons, A. W. (1939). "The Mathematical Association—II". Eureka. 2: 18–19.
  • Michael H Price Mathematics of the Multitude? A History of the Mathematical Association (MA, 1994)

External links[]

News items[]

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