Friday, May 29, 2015

Talk about dating & love in a Mathematics Class. Yes...you read it right.

What is this entry on 'Love'' doing at an educator's blog. Well...it has a reason, as it concerns Maths.

I work for an agency, where education for Peace and Sustainable Development is our mandate. I have been dong some basic level research for the last year or so on how to utilise mainstream subjects like Maths and Science to teach Peace and Sustainable Development. My aim was to embed these elements in the curriculum of these subjects. The primary aim was to utilise Maths and science as tools for Peace. You know boring stuff we do as peace educators (this sentence is only meant for students reading this blog)

So, it was as simple as turning a simple mathematical question like 240-18 =? into

Bharatpur Sanctuary has 240 species of birds and 18 of them have gone extinct. How many are left.

Same question but the context is different. Though I wonder how interesting a context is that for a kid.

Its the usage of Maths as a tool engaging social aspects that makes it come alive. I have been a strong advocate of mathematics being taught through its application in real life. A whole chapter in my book is dedicated to that.

Anyhow...

An email took me the Hannah Fry's TED talk on 'The Mathematics of Love', wherein she uses data from a dating website to predict the effectiveness of finding a partner. Its the sheer use of big data, if I may call it, and mathematics to decipher love patterns and dating patterns.

For me it was a fun video to watch...interesting insights... until she started talking of divorces and mathematical equations to predict them.

I was zapped when she made an analogy between countries at war....and boom it was Maths for Peace...that she was talking about. Something I was up to in my job.

While several single people may get benefitted by this video to find a date...fortunately I have one. But for sure Mathematics has the potential to bring peace on the planet....and love too.

Wonder what if we start a Maths class for young teenagers like that...wouldnt they be interested in Maths. The Maths class would be a super hit. I think its an interesting video to be shared in Maths classrooms of  senior grades... as they start dating.

And perhaps an interesting context to begin talking about peace. Love takes us to peace.

Do watch this amazingly interesting video.



1 comment:

vijay said...

Bringing dating and love into a mathematics class? Unexpectedly fascinating! Mixing equations with emotions sparks engaging discussions, showing connections between the abstract world of numbers and the complexities of human relationships.
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