On Monday April 29, 60 high school students from Blessed Trinity Catholic Secondary School, Westlane Secondary School, and Port Colborne High School visited Niagara College’s Welland Campus to explore how math can be applied to solve real-world problems.
Experience College Math is a joint initiative between Niagara College, the District School Board of Niagara and the Niagara Catholic District School Board. The day is designed for students enrolled in MFM1P (Foundations of Applied Math) to participate in hands-on labs that demonstrated how the concepts taught in high school translate to real-world skills in college and beyond.
“For the sixth year running, Experience College Math is just one of the ways that Niagara College engages with local high school students to expose them to the possibilities of a college education, and the benefits of applied, hands-on learning,” said Joanne Bakker, associate dean of Workforce Development.
Students participated in three hands-on applied math workshops taught by NC instructors. One demonstration, taught by Ivana Svec in the Pharmacy Lab, allowed students to learn about ratios and division in the context of pharmaceutical practices. In NC’s Green Automotive Technology Lab, Kristina Wamboldt demonstrated the concepts of diameter and circumference on a car tire to illustrate how they impact distance travelled. The third lab was a culinary experiment instructed by Allan Walsh.
Professor Kristina Wamboldt and a student from Blessed Trinity use a car tire to demonstrate applied math concepts.
“Experience College Math program is very important because there are many misconceptions about what math at the college level is really like,” said Wamboldt, professor, Mathematics. “Another reason is that many students are disengaged with math, saying that they are not ‘math people.’ This program shows students the relevance of math in practical applications and in specific career paths.”
The program is highly collaborative, with high school teachers assisting their students in each NC-faculty-taught lesson. “The teachers were an amazing resource, helping the students to master the concepts,” said Wamboldt.
As part of Experience College Math, students also had the opportunity to tour the College campus and interact with faculty and staff.
Experience College Math is a local event that is part of the School College Work Initiative, a collaboration between the Council of Ontario Directors of Education and the Committee of College Presidents and jointly funded by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Colleges and Universities. First implemented in 1997, SCWI funds projects and forums that support student success in secondary education and assist students in their transition from secondary school to college programs.
