Sir, – As a student following the Project Maths syllabus in Fifth Year, I feel Kate Mockler’s letter (March 5th) focused on the negatives in Project Maths, whereas there is much more to consider.
Project Maths gives maths an application. It gives it context by relating it to the world we live in and a use beyond exams. It forces students to question the “whys” and “hows” of mathematics. Before its introduction, students could get through the Leaving cycle by learning off some formulae and sticking the correct numbers in, but now they need to understand it fully, they need to understand and be able to explain the basic principles of mathematics.
Is education about learning how to pass exams or about truly understanding the principles of what you’re being taught?
I agree it needs some work and the system hasn’t been perfected yet, but Project Maths is about much more than just exams. It promotes problem-solving skills as well as abstract reasoning and will definitely not put people at a disadvantage in third level, rather quite the opposite.
The old maths syllabus would benefit you if you went on to study only mathematics. However Project Maths will be advantageous in every single course or career path you could choose to take. – Yours, etc,