The Mathematical Association
AbbreviationMA
Formation1871
Legal statusNon-profit organisation and registered charity
PurposeProfessional organisation for mathematics educators
Location
  • The Mathematical Association, Charnwood Building, Holywell Park, Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park, Leicestershire, LE11 3AQ
Region served
UK
Main organ
MA Council President – Professor Nira Chamberlain (2023-2024)
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 1951, Mary Cartwright became the first female president of the Mathematical Association.[3]

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 Diploma of the Mathematical Association, 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".[4] 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.[5]

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
Adopted
Granted 1 June 1965 [8]
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. ↑ Williams, Mrs. E. M. (October 1966), "Presidential Address: The Changing Role of Mathematics in Education", The Mathematical Gazette, 50 (373): 243–254, doi:10.2307/3614669, JSTOR 3614669, S2CID 186846165
  4. ↑ "The Mathematical Association — supporting mathematics in education". Archived from the original on 13 March 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2008.
  5. ↑ BMCE Handbook Archived 10 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 2018-10-09
  6. ↑ "Court Circular". The Times. No. 36051. London. 29 January 1900. p. 9.
  7. ↑ MA presidents have served 1 year terms, starting with Neville.
  8. ↑ "Mathematical Association". Heraldry of the World. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. 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)

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