In One Indian City, Learning Mathematics Requires the Right Ambiance

June 19, 2007

In Thiruvananthapuram, which Mahatma Gandhi called India's "evergreen city," the Central Board of Secondary Education has created a Mathematics Lab. The lab's aim is to make learning mathematics pragmatic and interesting by offering students the right instructional environment. Students grasp essential concepts and skills by doing basic activities in a setting full of mathematics.

This city of 750,000, once known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala, located on the west coast, in the southernmost part of the mainland. Several city schools have adopted the concept of the mathematics laboratory.

Designed by the Institute of Scientific Research & Training, the lab encourages students to handle concrete objects so that they can discover and prove geometric properties through the manipulation of models and the taking of measurements. At the same time, teachers have an easier time explaining abstract concepts.

Thus far, the institute has developed more than 100 mathematical lab items to aid the study of concepts behind projectile motion, tangrams, algebra, and various puzzles. The institute's managing director, Anian Koshy, indicated that such a hands-on approach would make learning mathematics, which is often considered to be difficult, more purposeful.

The institute is also the guiding force behind the organizing of mathematics exhibitions and a "Maths Expo," a mathematical talent search exam in several parts of the subcontinent.

Source: United News of India, June 7, 2007.