Pupils from schools in Cork experienced a new and fun way to embrace maths when they visited cloud security firm Trend Micro this week. As well as Junior Maths Circle fun and a briefing on Internet safety, students enjoyed a unique virtual reality Maths tour using the Oculus Rift prototype virtual reality headset.
“Junior Maths Circle, a collaboration of Maths Circles Ireland, Claran Consultants and Trend Micro, is a fantastic and interactive way to teach Maths to young people; it offers a completely fresh approach tailored for 5th and 6th classes, so that they are interested and enjoy learning science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects”, said William Dalton, Junior Maths Circle mentor and director of corporate technology, Trend Micro.
Junior Maths Circles is an eight-week programme for primary school pupils. Classes can run as part of a school day or as an after-school initiative. A mentor, usually from the STEM sector, works with the students on a weekly basis and helps them understand the different sectors, thus stimulating interest and encouraging learning in subjects such as science, technology, engineering and maths.
Dr Davide Goulding of Maths Circles Ireland has been working closely with Claran Consultants and Trend Micro to roll out the programme. “[Maths Circles Ireland’s] aim is to achieve an increase in the enjoyment of, and interest in, mathematics among students,” he said. “This project is a wonderful opportunity to increase the uptake of mathematics among students and having the support of a company like Trend Micro plays a key role in its success to date.”
The schedule of events for the day included an interactive maths game and a demonstration of the Oculus Rift, a virtual reality prototype, of which there are only five in existence globally.
Avril Ronan, senior operations manager, Trend Micro, said: “We really wanted to show young people how innovation works, and how they can be part of shaping the future of technology. By showing students how exciting it can be to work in an innovative technology company, we hope to encourage them to consider taking science, technology and maths subjects, so that there is a pipeline of talented and interested young people available to work in this exciting and dynamic sector.”
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