On Monday, 15^th October, “Maths Week” began in Presentation College.

During Maths Week, students had the opportunity to participate in presentations, quizzes and competitions in which students won prizes for their efforts.

There was also a question for each day of the week and students were encouraged to participate by answering the questions. The students found the quizzes a lot of fun to do. Many of them won prizes in the various competitions, which made it all the more worthwhile for their efforts.

The highlight of the week was a Maths Workshop that was held in Carlow Institute of Technology. Transition Year students attended the workshop, which was presented by an expert in the area of mathematics, namely Colin Wright, who came all the way from England to give this very informative lecture on patterns and predictions.

He enriched his mathematical lecture with moments of juggling and joking to the amusement of the students. They were delighted in this more informal way of presenting answers to mathematical problems because of the practical way in which Colin presented his work. Students also found this very easy to understand.

Thanks to his friendly approach and expertise, students were able to discover Maths from a different and more interesting perspective.

We need to remember that Maths is a continuously evolving subject which gives us many opportunities to solve unsolved mathematical problems. We cannot forget that there are still six unsolved millennium mathematical problems, for each of which there is a prize of a million dollars for the one who comes up with the answer.

Overall, I would say that most students who took part in “Maths Week” not only benefited greatly from the experience, but they also enjoyed the week hugely.

Damian Korus, Transition Year.