Innovations in Mathematics
Education Via the Arts
BIRS, Banff, Jan 2007
Participants
Alagic, Mara, Wichita State University
Atela, Pau, Smith College
Bier, Carol, Mills College / The Textile Museum
Bosch, Robert, Oberlin College
Burkholder, Doug, Lenoir-Rhyne College
Craven, Stewart, Toronto District School Board
de Vries, Gerda, University of Alberta
Fisher, Gwen, Cal Poly
Friedman, Nathaniel, SUNY Albany
Gerofsky, Susan, University of British Columbia
Gomez, Paco, Polytechnic U Madrid / McGill
Greenfield, Gary, University of Richmond
Hart, George, Stony Brook University
Hartshorn, Kevin, Moravian College
Higginson, William, Queens University
Huylebrouck, Dirk, Hogeschool Wetenschap en
Kunst
Kaplan, Craig, University of Waterloo
Klotz, Gene, Swarthmore / Math Forum at Drexel
Mellor, Blake, Loyola Marymount University
Rappaport, David, Queen's University
Richter, David A., Western Michigan University
Rimmington, Glyn, Wichita State University
Sarhangi, Reza, Towson University
Schattschneider, Doris, Moravian College
Sequin, Carlo, University of California, Berkeley
Taimina, Daina, Cornell University
Toussaint, Godfried, McGill University
Wagner, Philip, The Fusion Project
Yackel, Carolyn, Mercer University
Vague Schedule
• Day 1: introduction, presentations
Night 1: optional construction
workshop
• Day 2: exploration, brainstorming, and
discussion
Night 2: optional workshops
• Day 3: proposal preparation
Night 3: optional hot spring excursion?
• Day 4: reporting and planning for future
• Day 5: morning: conclusions
afternoon: depart
Monday Schedule
• Start at 9:00. Welcome by Brenda Shakotko
• Introductory remarks
• Five-to-ten minute introductions. Describe yourself,
your art/math interests, and past or future projects.
• Late afternoon: Discuss goals.
• Breaks:
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Coffee: 10:15 and 3:15
Lunch: 12:00-1:00
Group photo: Tuesday 12:00 Corbett stairs
Banff tour: 1:00-2:00, by Jim Olver, Corbett 2nd fl. lounge
• Evening: CD sculpture activity, here
Official Objectives
• Our primary objective is to bring together a
diverse body of mathematically trained
professionals who individually incorporate the arts
in their educational activities. As a group, we will
brainstorm to identify promising areas and
techniques for a wider movement of math
education via the arts. Then we will strategize by
sketching proposal ideas, considering possible
funding means, making detailed proposals, and
assembling focused teams to implement the results
appropriately.
More Objectives
We hope to incubate a range of projects in which the
participants engage in development and
dissemination that will ultimately transfer ideas to
educators, students, and the public. This will likely
include traditional means—such as exhibits, books,
websites, workshops, videos, and special sessions at
education conferences—but should include novel
ideas as well.
Possible Outcomes
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New individual projects
New collaborations
Book of art/math activities aimed at teachers
Conference or special session
Resource material, e.g., website, CDROM, …
Exhibits, one-time, traveling, or permanent
Art/math museum
List of research questions
Proposals
Other…
Fields of Mathematics Listed on 1-Page Sheet
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Geometry, 18
Algebra, 6
Symmetry, 4
All / general, 4
Topology, 3
Statistics, 3
Combinatorics, 2
History of mathematics, 2
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Mathematical modeling, 1
Knot theory, 1
Set theory, 1
Sequences and limits, 1
Algorithms, 1
Number theory, 1
Optimization, 1
Quantitative proficiency, 1
Resources / Organizations
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Bridges Conference
ISAMA Conference
SIGMAA Arts
Others?
Math–Art Relationships
• Math is Art — theorems or proofs are beautiful
• Math as Art — math objects can be presented
beautifully, e.g., fractal visualization
• Math in Art — analysis of artworks for
structure, e.g., perspective, symmetry, etc.
• Mathematical Art — works by Escher and
others that have “mathematical content”
—Helmer Aslaksen