2020 Diversity in Mathematics: Online High School Math Camp- Information and Registration

Online High School math camp Application Information:

Due to COVID-19, we are moving this camp entirely ONLINE!

Application deadline extended to July 10, 2020.

Are you in grade 10, 11 or 12? Do you find math stimulating and fun?  Do you want to challenge yourself and learn more math but are not sure how to? Do you wonder if and how math would be helpful for a future career? Do you want to meet new friends from diverse backgrounds who are interested in pursuing STEM majors? Do you want to meet undergraduate mentors in STEM majors studying in universities nationwide and learn about their journey from high school to university? Do you want to be part of the community that promotes diversity and inclusivity in STEM fields? If the answer is yes, then this camp is for you!

The main goal of the online camp is to provide an opportunity to a group of high school students with diverse backgrounds to explore their talents and further develop their mathematical skills in a collaborative and encouraging environment as highlighted below.

Highlights of the camp: 

1. Students have the option of choosing one week or both weeks. However we encourage you attend both weeks for maximum benefit. The fee for one week is $25 and $35 for both weeks.

2.You will explore higher level math topics that are not part of regular school curricula. Math professors who are experts in these mathematical areas will present all material in a way that is accessible and understandable to high school students. Possible topics include mathematics of origami and puzzles, elementary graph theory, game theory and math modelling.

3. Numerous math career options in the academic, industrial or corporate settings will be showcased to you via guest presentations and panel discussions. Participants will get a sense of how mathematics is woven into the fabric of modern life, which helps them obtain the view of the subject that goes beyond the course requirements.

4. You will interact with undergraduate students who are studying STEM majors, through joint activities with participants of the national summer school for women who study mathematics at the undergraduate level. In these sessions, they will be your mentors who will work with you on particular mathematical topics and will share the joys and challenges that university students experience during their academic journey.

5. Students have the opportunity to win cash prizes worth at least $50 for submitted works and active engagement. 

We wish to give the camp participants a glimpse of higher math and college life, and help them realize that university is a place for them.

Core Values of the Summer Camp

Respect:

Camp participants are expected to respect all people involved in the Diversity of Mathematics summer camp, including themselves, other camp participants, teachers, the camp coordinator, PIMS/UBC/SFU faculty and staff. 

Participation:

The camp participants are expected to wholeheartedly participate in all camp activities. This includes listening to teachers, supervisors, and other presenters; completing all required work to the best of their abilities; and following and complying with all instructions given by the camp coordinator.

Attitude:

The camp participants are expected to maintain a positive and friendly attitude throughout the virtual camp.

Safety:

The Diversity of Mathematics summer camp is a safe and fun virtual meeting for all its participants. Any kind of unethical online behaviour such as cyber-bullying, online harassment, social media teasing, or behaviour that in any way threatens the safety of others and/or themselves will not be tolerated.

Attendance:

Accepted particpants will decide whether they attend either week 1 or Week 2, or both. The camp participants are expected to present themselves online on time, and attend all sessions with their faces visible to the camp coordinator and camp instructors. Participants who join after 9:30 will be considered late. In order to be eligible for a camp completion certificate or prizes, a student must have no more than two late arrivals or absences.

Course Information and Instructor Biographies: 

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Course 1: Callysto Mini-course.

How can we use data and mathematics to understand events happening in our daily lives? In this three-part workshop series, you’ll learn , explore , and implement math and data science skills to understand the spread of disease. You’ll also explore how data science and mathematics can be used to find solutions. No programming experience is required to attend these sessions.

Session 1: Learning: 

In this session, we’ll learn about mathematical models – what they are, when they are used,and how they can be useful. We’ll analyze an example using the “Susceptible, Exposed, Infected and Recovered” (SEIR) model used in epidemiology, the study of how disease occurs in populations. By the end of the session, participants will be familiar with the concept of mathematical modelling and feel comfortable talking about the SEIR model.

Session 2: Implementing: 

This session will begin with an introduction to data science and computational thinking. High school and undergraduate students will then work together to build an interactive simulation of the SEIR model from the “learn” session using Python and Jupyter notebooks. Undergraduate students will act as mentors and help as we explore the math behind the model. Together we’ll implement mathematical equations in our code. At the end of the session, the instructor will facilitate a Q & A on what is like to work as a data scientist.

Session 3: Exploring:

We’ve implemented a mathematical simulation. Now, it's time to explore what happens when we change conditions in a simulation! In this session, we’ll take our simulation from the “implement” session to change initial conditions, and observe and interpret results from those changes. We’ll compare our simulation results against open COVID-19 data and graphs (provided by the facilitator). By the end of this session, participants will have an understanding of how the model they worked on relates to real data, its limitations and areas of improvement

Instructor Biography:

Laura Gutierrez-Funderburk is a data scientist for the Callysto project, a federally-funded initiative in Canada helping students and teachers learn data science skills (coding, data analysis, and data visualization). Laura has developed numerous data science teaching resources for students and teachers alike. She is experienced in research, conference organization, and facilitating data science learning experiences which celebrate diversity and are tailored to a variety of skill levels. Laura holds a Bachelor of Mathematics from Simon Fraser University (SFU). Her alma mater recognized her work in creating enriching learning experiences by awarding her the Terry Fox Gold medal. Laura enjoys sharing her enthusiasm for coding and problem solving, and hopes this will inspire students to explore mathematics and data science.

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Course 2: An Introduction to Mathematical Thinking and The Power of Visualization.

The course aims to introduce participants to aspects of mathematical thinking that are beneficial when pursuing post-secondary studies and solving real problems. The main theme is centred on viewing mathematics as a language and learning to read between the lines. Students will practice hearing what not said and developing the ability to visualize ideas. Pre-requisites: Grit and growth mindset.

Instructor Biography:

Shawn Desaulniers is a Metis Canadian who grew up in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He received his Honours Bachelor of Science degree from Lakehead University in mathematics. After earning a doctorate degree in theoretical mathematics from the University of Alberta in 2008 he worked at Okanagan College and the University of British Columbia. In 2017 he returned to the University of Alberta where he primarily works with teaching candidates and on Indigenous student initiatives. In the past, he has helped to organize several conferences and workshops relating to mathematics and mathematical education, as well as problem-solving events and puzzle exhibits in BC and Alberta.

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Course 3: Communicating in Secret: The Mathematics of Cryptography.

Cryptography is the method of encoding a message so that if the message falls into the wrong hands then they will not be able to read it. Only the intended recipient will have the ability to reconstruct the original message. In our digital world it is no surprise that cryptography plays a vital role: for example, people wouldn't want their credit card number transmitted across the internet unsecured? In this mini-course we'll play around with some of the basic cryptographic schemes, and get some experience encoding and decoding messages. We'll also take on the role of a spy and use a computer to help us crack an encoded message. The cryptographic methods we'll be using are based on mathematics so we will also cover the required background knowledge in number theory: integers, prime numbers, and modular arithmetic.

Instructor Biography:

Jamie Mulholland is a senior lecturer in the Department of Mathematics, at Simon Fraser University. He has been a member of the department since the summer of 2006. Jamie's background is in pure mathematics; in particular abstract algebra, algebraic topology, combinatorial group theory, and number theory. He is also very interested in mathematics education and promoting mathematics to students at all age levels: elementary school through college/university. For Jamie, mathematics is a very beautiful subject, and highlights some of the greatest achievements in human thought, unfortunately not everyone hangs on long enough to reach the stage where they get to encounter this beauty. Jamie notes that some of the nicest mathematics will not be seen until a student reaches their first, second or even third year university level mathematics course. This is not to say that a high level of sophistication is required to understand or appreciate the ideas, in fact, quite the opposite is true. Some of the ideas can be presented to students as early as elementary school. Boosting a community appreciation towards mathematics is something that interests him a great deal. Jamie is always happy to meet with students who wish to talk about mathematics at any level, so please feel free to connect with him at the camp.

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Eligibility  and Application Requirements:

Eligibility: Canadian citizens or permanent residents who recently completed BC Precalculus 10 or an equivalent math course with the letter grade of at least a B. Priority will be given to participants from groups underrepresented in mathematics, science and engineering. 

Application Process: Students and teachers nominating their students, should fill in the online application form. The application deadline is: July 10, 2020. Results will be announced on or before July 17th.

Program Schedule:

Week 1: Online Schedule 

Week 2: Online Schedule