Math Bridge Launched

2000-11-27 - “But I don’t like math!”

That phrase – one too often heard by both parents and teachers – will be a thing of the past if a Queen's School of Business professor and his team of Queen's students have their way. Math Bridge, launched today, is a program that sends Queen's undergraduates into classes of grade two and five students in the Kingston area. Their aim is to get youngsters excited about learning math.

“This initiative has been met with incredible enthusiasm – from the City, the School Board and especially parents,” says Marc Busch, a professor at Queen's School of Business and the program’s founder, driving force and chief cheerleader. “Everyone agrees that we need to inspire children to want to learn math, because it’s so critical for their future success. The problem has been making math seem fun and relevant to them.

“We know that if we can get kids excited about math at an early age, there’s a better chance they’ll maintain that interest throughout their lives,” according to Professor Busch. “That’s where Math Bridge comes in.”

Here is how the program works. Teams of two to three Queen's undergraduate and MBA students visit classes of grade two or grade five students throughout the Limestone District School Board. They make a 10-minute presentation to the children, telling them about how they use math to solve interesting problems. Their examples will be tailored to the interests of the junior audience. For example, an Engineering student could explain how she uses math to figure out how to make a rocket fly, or a Commerce student could talk about how a toy company decides how many dolls to make to meet the Christmas rush. After the presentation, the Queen's students help the class with their current lesson, and leave behind some interesting math materials for the children to use.

“The key is for the children to see that it’s ‘cool’ for a university student to use math,” says Professor Busch. “Hearing that message from a Queen's student will have much more impact than the same lesson delivered by a parent or teacher.”

Math Bridge has already attracted over 150 volunteer Queen's students to visit local classrooms. Kingston Economic Development Corporation (KEDCO) has jumped on board with financial support, as has Alcan. The Limestone District School Board has been a strong supporter of Math Bridge from the very beginning, and is undertaking the challenge of organizing buses for Queen's students and scheduling the student teams in the classrooms.