Check out the Agricultural Science Video Blog – AgScienceVideos.blogspot.com – which is run by science teachers from St Columba’s College in Dublin.

It went online last March, and already has a wide range of videos, animations and other online resources about agricultural science.

To take a recent example, this year’s Leaving Cert exam had a question about the benefits of growing maize silage.

Not many teachers would be familiar with the growth of maize silage and the stages involved, so the site has provided useful links and a YouTube video from an Irish farm making maize silage.

Other subjects the site has covered so far include:

• Transpiration in plants

• Osmosis

• Crop rotation

• Pollination

• The effects of liver fluke

• Soil texture experiments

• A 3D computer-generated trip through the equine digestive system

• An interactive crossword (designed for the Leaving Cert Agricultural Science syllabus) to aid revision of sheep management

Learn more

Get the videos and other resources on the Agricultural Science Video Blog

“Even in a bumper year for college applications, [these] three disciplines regarded as cornerstones for the so-called smart economy are outpacing other areas,” the report says.

Meanwhile fewer students are opting for “the fashionable careers of the boom years such as architecture and law”.

“School-leavers, as well as the rising number of mature students now seeking to go back to college to acquire new skills, are obviously heeding the advice of the Government and industry experts about where the jobs will be in the new economy.”

- Irish Independent, 3 August 2010

Record figures

The trends have emerged in the Higher Education Authority’s analysis of this year’s college applications. This year the CAO is dealing with an all-time high of 77,126 applications, compared with 65,883 in 2007 before the economic downturn.

Within these record figures, science, engineering and computing are all capturing a greater share of first preferences than they did in 2007. The report finds that:

• Science has moved up from seventh to fifth place in terms of the most popular disciplines for level 8, honours degree programmes. It is now the top choice for 7% of applicants for level 8 courses, compared with 5.4% in 2007
• Computing attracted 1,835 first preferences in 2007 (3.3% of the total) and increased this year to 3,163 (4.7%)
• The number of students making engineering their first choice has risen from 3.8% to 4.3%

Learn more

Read the full report in the Irish Independent

Read more about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics on our MyScienceCareer.ie website

It covers biology, physics, chemistry, maths and earth sciences, highlighting the best in teaching and cutting-edge research, and focusing on interdisciplinary work.

The contents include teaching materials, recent science discoveries, education projects, interviews with young scientists and inspiring teachers, book reviews, and European events for teachers and schools.

Online articles are published in many European languages and an English-language print version is distributed across Europe.

Free resources

Originally supported by the European Commission, the free journal is published and funded by EIROforum, a collaboration of Europe’s seven largest intergovernmental research organisations.

Teachers in Ireland are invited to take part and help by:

• Submitting articles for publication
• Joining the referee panel and helping to decide which articles to publish
• Reviewing books and other resources for teachers
• Translating articles into their own language
• Sharing their teaching ideas in the online forum

You don’t have to register to read and download any of the articles on the website. If you do register (it’s free), you can subscribe to the print version, receive email alerts, leave your comments on articles, and use the discussion forum.

Learn more

Visit ScienceInSchool.org to subscribe to the journal, read online articles and use other handy resources

The programme is designed to improve maths teaching in order to enhance students’ skills and understanding, giving them an appreciation of the relevance of maths and how it applies to everyday life and problem-solving.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills, Mary Coughlan, has welcomed the report of the Project Maths Implementation Support Group.

This partnership between industry and education was set up to examine how business, second-level and higher education bodies can work together to achieve the objectives of Project Maths.

Some €5 million is being invested in professional development of teachers this year to support the initiative, and this will continue on a rolling basis to at least 2013.  It is the biggest investment in curriculum reform in a subject ever made by the State.

Main recommendations

The report’s key recommendations include:

• The rollout of Project Maths to all schools from September 2010
• The provision of at least one maths class each school day for all students in all schools
• The objective that by 2018 all those teaching maths should hold maths qualifications, with postgraduate courses provided to enable approximately 2,000 teachers without these qualifications to upgrade their skills
• Promoting the Project Maths message to all stakeholders through various media

The wide-ranging report also recommends:

• Awards for excellence in mathematics
• Industry volunteers to support teachers and students
• A mentoring scheme for high achievers
• A “Maths Champions Programme”
• The development of resources and other supports to provide authentic real-life maths examples in support of the curriculum
• The provision of comprehensive information on maths-related careers

Bonus points in Leaving Cert

While the group didn’t reach a consensus on giving bonus points for maths subjects, it recommended that:

• If bonus points are introduced they should be designed to compensate for the perceived additional workload associated with higher-level maths
• Such bonus points should be used to encourage pupils who currently drop down from higher to ordinary level  late in the senior cycle, who might be likely to score a Grade C at higher level
• There should be discussions with higher education institutions about possibly making maths a mandatory subject for CAO purposes
• These institutions should offer a safety net of “second chance” exams in the autumn for students who have taken higher-level maths but fail to reach minimum matriculation requirements. This would encourage more students to sit Leaving Cert Mathematics at higher level

Welcoming the report, the Tánaiste said: “Maths is an essential skill for disciplines such as science, technology, engineering and finance, but it is also an essential skill for life.

“The ability to think rationally, analyse and solve problems, and process data clearly and accurately is assuming increasing importance as Ireland moves up the value chain in employment in the knowledge society.

“I am very pleased to see this partnership between the second level and higher education sectors and industry promoting and adding value to Project Maths.”

Learn more

Download the Project Maths report (PDF, 555 KB)

The organisers’ goal is to have at least one teacher from each member country, and so far there haven’t been any applications from Ireland.

The workshops about space and education will take place at the European Space Research and Technology Centre in the Netherlands from 28 to 30 June.

Find out more about the workshops and how to register.

Funding applications will be considered from students who wish to embark on a career in conservation. The deadline for applications is midday on 30 June 2010.

CNCI is an umbrella body for Ireland’s leading national cultural institutions, including museums and galleries, major libraries, the Abbey Theatre, the National Archives of Ireland.

Learn more

Read more details and download an application form from CNCI’s website

The new GeoSchol.com website about geology for schools

Over 4,000 schools in Ireland, both North and South, have received activity booklets containing geological exercises, games and large posters for their classrooms as part of an educational outreach project by Trinity College Dublin (TCD).

A new website, GeoSchol.com, has digital versions of the geosciences resources, from activity sheets to booklets, as well as links to geology institutions and educational sites.

The initiative is being co-ordinated by Dr Patrick Wyse Jackson from TCD’s Department of Geology and curator of the university’s Geological Museum.

The project is the second phase of an outreach programme that saw rock samples distributed to almost 5,000 schools two years ago.

The programme is supported by Geoschol, which is funded by the Griffith Awards at the Geological Survey of Ireland. It involves a consortium of TCD’s Geological Museum, the National Museum of Ireland and the Ulster Museum.

Mike McKay from the European Space Agency (ESA) gave the talk about the ESA’s education and outreach activities.

This includes a plan to launch some small satellites called Cubesats later this year. The nine satellites have been built by scientists and students at European universities, mainly using commercial off-the-shelf electronic components.

Each 1 kg CubeSat will be deployed in a low Earth orbit, and is expected to operate in orbit for up to a year using a small ground station at its university.

McKay also looked at how a wide range of activities have enabled Europe to win over two fifths of the global space market.

Scientific literacy

This is the fourth year of the annual Communicating STEM conference, which is organised by Discover Science & Engineering, NUI Galway and Engineers Ireland. It brings together people working in STEM communications and outreach from all over the island of Ireland.

A common topic throughout this year’s conference  was that scientific literacy is not a luxury but part of being a full and active citizen in modern Ireland.

Andrea Bandelli, a researcher and adviser to international science communication projects, said science communication centres should foster debate about “difficult” issues such as nanotechnology risks, climate change and stem cell research.

Projects and initiatives

Dr Sally Montgomery from Belfast’s W5 science centre asked: “What matters – flash tricks or reality and vision?” She described W5 outreach projects, such as an initiative on climate change that links schools in Ethiopia, Ghana and Ireland.

Dr Martin Hendry from the University of Glasgow gave a presentation titled “Did we really land on the Moon?” He showed how to use practical science projects to explore “Moon hoax” conspiracy theories.

Fiachra Ó Marcaigh, AMAS Director, explored the opportunities and challenges of using new media channels in STEM communication, and the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Prof Patrick Cunningham, gave a talk on “Building the Knowledge Economy” – practical measures of our progress.

Brendan Smith, Education Outreach Officer at NUI Galway, explored a wide range of science outreach and technology-enabled social projects in Co Galway. Dr Alan Blair, of Northern Ireland’s STEM review, talked about the issues raised by the review.

This article of the same name by a leading Oxford mathematics professor, Marcus du Sautoy, addresses an age-old problem, “How do you spark off an interest in maths when the curriculum seems, well, rather dreary?”

The Guardian published the article almost a year ago, but now it’s having a new lease of life as a top 10 link in the hotlist of Delicious, the social bookmarking website.

Maths in school

In his article back in June 2009, Professor du Sautoy compared his childhood discovery of the beauty of maths with the school experiences of his 13-year-old son.

Maths mysteries and big stories - Professor Marcus du Sautoy (picture: Niccolò Caranti)

At the same age, he himself had been taken aside by his maths teacher after one lesson, and given some recommendations of “a few books that he thought might interest me.” As the professor recalls:

“He conspiratorially intimated that the maths we were doing in the classroom wasn’t really what maths was about. It was something much more exciting, creative, imaginative. Those books provided me with a key to the secret garden of mathematics.

“In that garden I discovered that mathematics also has great stories. Unsolved mysteries like the enigma of prime numbers. Magical mathematical machines that could help you see in four dimensions.”

Like his son studying Shakespeare, he certainly didn’t understand everything in these maths books, but they inspired him to delve further into the mystery, the big stories and journeys to infinity and beyond.

His Guardian article ends by asking: “Why are more children not given the key to this secret garden? Why can’t we include the Shakespeare of maths in the curriculum?”

Marcus du Sautoy is Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and recently succeeded Richard Dawkins as Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science. He is author of “The Music of the Primes” and “Finding Moonshine” (both HarperPerennial).

Science and maths podcasts

Professor du Sautoy isn’t just a regular contributor to the Guardian newspaper – he is also a frequent participant in his university’s free podcasts for the public.

These range from “An introduction to astrophysics” to a public debate on “What is science for?”

Listen to mathematical, physical and life sciences podcasts from the University of Oxford.

This week the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills, Mary Coughlan, gave her backing to the reintroduction of bonus points in higher-level Leaving Cert maths.

“There is growing recognition that the ongoing problems across maths and the sciences in our education system are undermining Ireland. The possible re-introduction of bonus points for maths is to be welcomed but this is not enough in isolation.”

- John Power, Engineers Ireland

Mr Power says the problems around the subject area are complex and need fundamental changes to curriculum and teaching methodologies. Key actions would include:

• Greater resourcing of the Project Maths initiative
• The requirement for teachers to have specific education qualifications in maths and the sciences to teach these subjects
• Tax breaks for teacher retraining

ICT Ireland, the IBEC group that represents the high-tech sector, also welcomed the proposal for bonus points for maths.