Organizing Committee
- Amalia Culiuc
Amherst College - Augustine O'Keefe
Connecticut College - Katharine Ott
Bates College - Ulrica Wilson
ICERM/Morehouse College
Abstract
GirlsGetMath@ICERM is a five-day non-residential mathematics program that is open to high schoolers, regardless of gender, who live in or near greater Rhode Island and who will be entering the 10th or 11th grade in the fall of 2019.
GirlsGetMath occurs in an encouraging environment that builds young students' confidence in math and science.
GirlsGetMath expands participants' understanding and knowledge of mathematics through computations and experimentations.
GirlsGetMath provides expert mathematical training and mentoring.
GirlsGetMath@ICERM encourages 20-25 high schoolers to explore topics such as cryptography, the mathematics of voting, image processing, prime numbers and factoring, and fractals.
The goals of the program are:
- to show young adults that the study of mathematics can be exciting, beautiful, and useful
- to build confidence in students' mathematical knowledge through engaging and expert mathematical instruction
- to provide an affirming environment that introduces high schoolers to a variety of career opportunities in which sophisticated mathematical ability plays a key role
- to emphasize the strategic role mathematics plays for success in STEM careers
- to provide the participants with a support group and expert mentors who are successful undergraduate, graduate students, postdocs, and professionals from the STEM workforce
- to have a positive influence on the way students view their mathematical interest and ability
Program Details
- Instructors
- The faculty organizers will be joined by undergraduate, graduate students, and postdocs who will serve as teaching fellows in the program. Two GirlsGetMath alumni will be chosen to assist during the program as well.**
- Location
- Pandemic permitting, the program will take place at the Institute for Computational and Experimental Research in Mathematics (ICERM) on the Brown University campus.
- Participant Requirements
-
- Students must not have attended a previous GirlsGetMath@ICERM program
- Students must be in the 10th or 11th grade in the fall of 2019
- Students must live in or near the greater Providence, RI area
- Students must ask one math teacher to submit a letter of reference
- Tuition
- Tuition is $100. Full financial aid is available. Daily lunch included.
GirlsGetMath Schedule
Monday, August 12, 2019
| Time | Event | Location | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:30 - 9:00am EDT | Registration / Check In | 11th Floor Collaborative Space, 121 South Main Street, 11th Floor | |
| 9:00 - 9:50am EDT | Warm up: LockBox and Introductions | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 9:50 - 10:00am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Break | |
| 10:00 - 11:00am EDT | Introduction to cryptography | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 11:00 - 11:10am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 11:10 - 12:00pm EDT | Introduction to matrices and vectors | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 12:00 - 1:00pm EDT | Lunch | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 1:00 - 1:50pm EDT | Introduction to MATLAB | 10th Floor Seminar Room | |
| 1:50 - 2:00pm EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 2:00 - 3:30pm EDT | Lab: Introduction to MATLAB | 10th Floor Seminar Room |
Tuesday, August 13, 2019
| Time | Event | Location | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:50am EDT | Warm up: The Monty Hall problem | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 9:50 - 10:00am EDT | Group Photo / Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Break | |
| 10:00 - 11:00am EDT | Recommendation systems | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 11:00 - 11:10am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 11:10 - 12:00pm EDT | Lab: Recommendation systems and heat maps | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 12:00 - 1:00pm EDT | Lunch | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 1:00 - 1:50pm EDT | Probability primer | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 1:50 - 2:00pm EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 2:00 - 2:45pm EDT | Spam or Ham | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 2:45 - 3:30pm EDT | Lab: Bayesian classifiers | 10th Floor Seminar Room |
Wednesday, August 14, 2019
| Time | Event | Location | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:50am EDT | Warm up: Topology puzzles | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 9:50 - 10:00am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Break | |
| 10:00 - 11:00am EDT | Transforming images with matrix arithmetic | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 11:00 - 11:10am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 11:10 - 12:00pm EDT | Image filters and effects | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 12:00 - 1:00pm EDT | Lunch | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 1:00 - 1:50pm EDT | Template matching | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 1:50 - 2:00pm EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 2:00 - 2:45pm EDT | Lab: Image filters and effects | 10th Floor Seminar Room | |
| 2:45 - 3:30pm EDT | Lab: Template matching | 10th Floor Seminar Room |
Thursday, August 15, 2019
| Time | Event | Location | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:30am EDT | Warm up: The game SET | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 9:30 - 1:30pm EDT | Visit to Brown campus and Harris Lab, lunch on campus | ||
| 1:30 - 2:00pm EDT | Apportionment | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 2:00 - 2:10pm EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 2:10 - 3:30pm EDT | Lab: Apportionment | 10th Floor Seminar Room |
Friday, August 16, 2019
| Time | Event | Location | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:50am EDT | Warm up: Geometry and gerrymandering | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 9:50 - 10:00am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Break | |
| 10:00 - 11:00am EDT | Introduction to graph theory | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 11:00 - 11:10am EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 11:10 - 12:00pm EDT | Epidemic spread | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 12:00 - 1:00pm EDT | Lunch | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 1:00 - 1:50pm EDT | Lab: Epidemic spread on graphs | 10th Floor Seminar Room | |
| 1:50 - 2:00pm EDT | Break | 11th Floor Collaborative Space | |
| 2:00 - 2:45pm EDT | Wrap up session | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 2:45 - 3:30pm EDT | What's next? Panel on college and internships | 11th Floor Lecture Hall | |
| 3:30 - 4:30pm EDT | Closing Ceremony | 11th Floor Lecture Hall |
2019 Participating Institutions
- Barrington High School
- Beacon Charter HS
- Blackstone Valley Prep High School
- Cranston High School West
- East Greenwich High School
- La Salle Academy
- Milton Academy
- Moses Brown School
- Narragansett High School
- North Kingstown High School
- North Providence High School
- Paul Cuffee Upper School
- Ponaganset High School
- Portsmouth Abbey School
- Portsmouth High School
- Rising Tide Charter School
- Seekonk High School
- South Kingstown High School
- St. Mary Academy Bay View
- Tolman High School
- William M. Davies Career and Technical High School
Purpose of Program
Despite the fact that jobs in STEM are multiplying and pay better than other careers, women remain woefully underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math jobs. Some of this imbalance may be traced back to attitudes about mathematics and sciences in middle school and high school. There is a documented decline in girls’ positive feels about mathematics beginning in middle school, and from this point forward girls are far less likely than their male peers to choose elective courses in mathematics and the sciences[1][2]. The absence of girls in mathematics and science elective courses is especially severe among low-income and disadvantaged students. Research has shown that school-aged girls may not realize that their preferred career choice requires coursework in mathematics and sciences[3], so these decisions can have long lasting consequences.
GirlsGetMath@ICERM aims to build knowledge and confidence in mathematics ability early in education, ultimately shaping the way the students view themselves and their mathematical interests and potential. The program will:
- Demonstrate through hands-on activities, games, and computer simulations that the study of mathematics can be exciting, beautiful and useful;
- Introduce the high school participants to a variety of career opportunities for which sophisticated mathematical ability plays a key role, with an emphasis on the central role mathematics plays for success in STEM careers; and
- Provide the participants with a support group of like-minded peers and mentors.
- An outstanding feature of the GirlsGetMath@ICERM program is its commitment to quality. The program content is created by Ph.D. mathematicians who collectively have many years of experience as researchers and educators. The content is chosen to be at the appropriate level for the participants, but at the same time challenging, useful, and engaging to high school students. The Faculty Organizers of GirlsGetMath are college and university faculty in mathematics with experience leading summer mathematics programs for students. The Teaching Assistants are undergraduate and graduate students in mathematics and computer science.
References:
[1] J. Blue and D. Gann, When do girls lose interest in math and science?, Science Scope, (2008).
[2] J. Wilkins and X. Ma, Modeling change in students attitude toward and beliefs about mathematics, Journal of Educational Research, (2007).
[3] L. Pettitt, Middle School Students’ Perception of Math and Science Abilities and Related Careers, 61st Biennial Meeting of Research in Child Development, (1995).
