Kerala   

Students get help to crack maths mystery

Fun with figures: Students at the Mathematics Lab of Mother India International School Residential Public, Attingal

ATTINGAL: Adolescence is the most fascinating and dangerous period in the life of an individual, says D. Sreedevi, Chairperson, Kerala State Women’s Commission.

She was speaking after inaugurating an NIIT eGuru Mathematics Lab at Mother India International Residential Public School here on Monday.

Referring to the growing number of atrocities against adolescents, Ms. Sreedevi said that both male and female students were being subjected to sexual harassment. “Family ties are dwindling and children are going astray,” she said.

Noted author and mathematician Ahuja, who is associated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), described maths as a subject that can either tease or please the students. “However, only 25 per cent of the students are pleased with the subject,” he said. “It is a subject that requires thinking and remembering and sustained hardwork. Mathematics loves those who solve questions by themselves and hates those who read it,” he said.

Anthony R. Antic, general manager, School Learning Solutions, NIIT, hoped that the lab with its interactive mode of tutoring would get children interested in the subject. The 600 sq.ft. building constructed at a cost of Rs.8 lakh has a seating capacity of 30 students. The lab has teaching and learning aids including videos, computers, measuring instruments and tables and charts.

It provided an opportunity for students to understand, internalise, discover and verify some of the basic mathematical and geometrical concepts through concrete objects and situations, thus building interest and confidence in students, said Mr. Antic. The laboratory also allowed and encouraged students to think and discuss among themselves as well as with the teacher and assimilate concepts, he said.

S. Sudin, Principal of the school, said that the lab would conduct daily math sessions for the students. Introduced by the CBSE in 2004, one of the primary objectives of the maths lab is to develop interdisciplinary links with other subjects and to make mathematics more pragmatic and life-oriented at the school level.

As per the CBSE circular, the tools and instruments at the lab should be innovative and students should be continuously evaluated on the basis of their work here. Classroom teaching should be divided into theory and practical. The CBSE had also directed that 20 per cent of the marks be allocated to each student from the lab assessments towards the final marks.

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