Gazette Issue 1 (March) now online

The first issue of the Gazette in 2009 is now online at http://www.austms.org.au/Gazette+Volume+36+Number+1+March+2009. The Gazette wishes all our readers a very happy new year, and we hope 2009 brings Australian mathematics much health, wealth and happiness! We would also like to warmly welcome our new president, Nalini Joshi. In her first President’s Column, Nalini gives [...]

Maths in crisis as teachers go private

The acute shortage of trained maths teachers is finally beginning to get some attention in the national media, thanks in part to the NCMS strategy paper mentioned in the previous post.  From today’s Australian: ADVANCED mathematics is disappearing from public school classrooms, leaving students able to learn only basic maths, because the few qualified teachers [...]

A national strategy for mathematics in Australia

The Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute has just placed on its web site a strategy paper entitled “A national strategy for mathematics in Australia” to combat the shortages of maths graduates and teachers in Australia, authored by Hyam Rubinstein (chair of the National Committee for the Mathematical Sciences).  The paper has a number of specific recommendations [...]

No maths for top kids

In a recent article for the Sunday Telegraph entitled “No maths for top kids”,  Miawling Lam writes on how the acute shortage of trained maths high school teachers is seriously impacting the ability of mathematically advanced students to get a quality education in the subject. The president of the Australian Mathematical Society, Nalini Joshi, sent [...]