Q: What is Mathworks?

A: Mathworks is a unique mathematics program designed to teach students mathematics at earlier ages. Mathworks outreach programs help all students excel in mathematics, and include students in grades 3-12, as well as teacher-training programs for both pre-service and in-service teachers. Mathworks provides an environment that encourages mathematical exploration and discovery, while providing students with a firm foundation in math that can be used in other areas of study as well.

Q: Is financial aid available for those interested in the Summer Math Camps?

A: Financial aid is available for all eligible candidates. Most students who participate in the Mathworks program are awarded some financial support, and in many cities the program is offered without charge by participating school districts.

Q: How can you become eligible to participate in the Mathworks programs?

A: All students are encouraged to get involved in a Mathworks program, regardless of subject knowledge. Mathworks was founded on the premise that all students can succeed in math! Mathworks has targeted outreach programs for students in underserved communities.

Q: What is the teacher training program?

A: Elementary and middle school teachers are trained during an intense two-week summer training program. They observe and participate in a class in the morning, and learn about the content and pedagogy in the afternoon. After observing a master teacher for the first two weeks, teacher trainees are then ready to begin using what they learn in their own summer math camps the next two weeks. School-year workshops and follow-up activities build a community of Mathworks alums who share ideas and teaching strategies. High school teachers also attend a six-week summer training camp, and join the vertical team to link the program to more advanced courses.

Q. What is different about this teacher- training program from the usual workshops that teachers attend?

A. Teachers do not just observe, but are active participants in working with students. Teachers learn how to lead students to discover why things work for themselves. Math dramas and hands-on activities introduce students to the scientific method mathematically—as students compute examples, discover patterns, make conjectures, and then justify the rules or theorems they have formulated. The classroom becomes problem-centered, not answer-centered. Mathematics comes alive as a dynamic subject used to model real problems, and teachers are energized with the excitement they bring to their teaching.

Q: Have there been significant improvements in student math skills?

A: Students participating in the two-week camp are pre-tested and tested after the program to measure the improvement in their mathematical ability. In test results, students have consistently shown impressive, significant gains in performance on nationally normed tests.

Q: Why is Mathworks important?

A: When we give students the tools to understand math and science, we are giving them a solid foundation for success. Mathworks’ students learn to never give up, and develop the confidence to not be afraid of any new challenge. Most importantly, they expand their expectations for what they can become.