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Raising A Mathematician
Raising A Mathematician Foundation
Uttan Vividh Lakshyee Shikshan Sanstha
&
organized by
Training Program
A brief report of
Objective of Raising A Mathematician Training Program
(RAM TP)
To search and mentor young Mathematical talent (age group 13 -15)
in the country. Guide them to hone their skills and thinking by giving
them the right tools, and create a research-mentality in mathematics.
About RAM TP 2014
A 6-day National-level residential camp was conducted at Ram Ratna
Vidyamandir, Uttan, Mumbai from 5th 10th May 2014, in joint
collaboration with Uttan Vividh Lakshyee Shikshan Sansthan for
students of 13 15 years who are exceptionally talented in
Mathematics. During the course of the program, the participants
were given exposure to fundamental as well as higher-level
mathematics along with the guidance and approach to dive deeper
into some topics in Mathematics from a different perspective. RAM
TP was a fully-funded program offered at free of cost to the students.
RAM Report 2 |
Selection Procedure
Out of 400 applications received from thirteen states all over India,
105 applications were selected in February 2014. The selection
procedure was based on Students' Application Form, Teachers
Recommendation Form and Parents' Form where the participant's
inclination towards mathematics and their career objectives were
assessed.
Program Schedule and Pedagogy
A normal day at RAM TP would start at 7:15 am with a meditation
session, followed by seven hours of classroom sessions with
adequate breaks, after-session discussions and end at 10 pm with
games based on analytical and lateral-thinking. The classroom
sessions were more interactive in nature unlike the normal teaching
method adopted in classes. The participants were encouraged to ask
questions and find out the reasons behind every statement, proofs
and derivation of different formulae, and discover something new
based on what they had learnt. It was observed that the children
loved the idea of discovering and proving things which they had not
done earlier. The conventional, routine method of learning focuses
on the use of formula for problem-solving without understanding the
way the formula has come up, the need by which it was derived. The
exams concentrate on problem-solving and hence there is a lack of
motivation among the students to dwell deep into concepts even if
they want to. One of the ideas of RAM TP was to break the idea of
exam-oriented learning and encourage students to understand the
concepts and find their applications in real-life situations. In short,
the objective was to enable them to discover knowledge rather than
imparting information to them.
RAM Report 3 |
Topics Covered
Geometry and Trigonometry with special reference to ancient Indian
mathematics and astronomy, Co-ordinate Geometry and Straight lines
with its application in Economics, Number Theory with discussions on
various works by famous Number Theorists, Averages and Dispersion
with special mention to sports, Correlation and Regression with special
mention to Analytics, Progressions (discovering new series), Equations
with special reference of solving linear and quadratic indeterminate
equations, Combinatorics from Chandas shastra (2300 years old) and its
application in modern day computer programming, Sets, Relations and
Functions, Introduction to Calculus, Logarithms, Introduction to
Financial Mathematics and Stock Market. The participants were also
given a book 'What is Mathematics' which explains various branches of
Mathematics in great detail. The participants have started doing
research in topics like Number Theory, Combinatorics, and so on, and
also writing computer programs for validating the results obtained. The
projects will be continuously monitored by the faculties and good
projects will be sent for presentations and exhibits in National
Conferences on Mathematics.
RAM Report 4 |
RAM Report 5 |
Faculty and invited speakers
The three main faculties of the program were Prof. Mandar
Bhanushe, R. Hariharan and Vinay Nair. Apart from the normal
lectures, everyday would witness an invited speaker. Prof. Sharad
Sane from IIT Bombay inaugurated the camp and lectured on
research in Mathematics. Prof. Mohan Apte delivered on
Bhaskaracharya-II and his contributions to Mathematics. Prof.
Ambuja Salgaonkar (HOD Computer Science department,
University of Mumbai) explained the use of Katapayadi (ancient Indian
coding system) and its application in cryptography. Bharat Karmarkar
delivered two sessions on explorative learning in mathematics.
Riddhi Shah gave an overview of educational system in the rural areas,
cultural imbalance in India and pursuing non-conventional careers in
Mathematics. Kanishka Khatri, guest lecturer for IT in Mumbai
University and Raheja College, did a session through activities and
games for improving left-brain and right-brain thinking, and out-of-
the-box thinking. R Hariharan gave a lecture on career options in
Applied Mathematics. The valedictory session was chaired by Dr.
Vasudha Kamat, Hon. Vice Chancellor, SNDT University.
Outcome
The program being residential
gave t he part i ci pant s an
opportunity to bond well with
each other and staying away
from the rest of the world (and
electronic gadgets) gave a
chance to discuss mathematics
round t he cl ock. I t was
observed that many of the
participants had got a research-
mentality in mathematics and are planning to take up a career related
to mathematics.
Future plans
Usually after such programs participants are very inspired for some
time but the inspiration dies out in due course of time. To avoid this
situation, RAM TP does not stop with the 6-day residential program.
The students would be in touch with the faculties throughout the
year by participating in online discussion forums, submitting their
research-projects online through Moodle, and forming discussion
groups (already started in Mumbai) where they will come together
every day during vacations and weekly once thereafter, to discuss on
Mathematics. The participants will also be encouraged to present
papers, exhibits and participate in National Conferences on
Mathematics.
The success of the program will be measured after ten years. During
the period of ten years, the candidates will be monitored and
mentored by the faculties.
RAM Report 6 |
About us
Raising A Mathematician Foundation is a Charitable Organisation
registered under Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950. Few of the objectives of
RAM Foundation are:
1. To create an interest, awareness and develop research attitude in
the field of Mathematics and allied areas.
2. To conduct national and international conferences, camps,
workshops, training programs, seminars, competitions, courses,
e-learning classes on Mathematics.
3. To provide scholarship and any other assistance to the needy
students and educational institutions.
4. To provide merit reward and achievement awards to students or
people in the field of Mathematics.
5. To felicitate people for their contribution in the field of
Mathematics or Mathematics education.
6. To publish books related to Mathematics or Mathematics
education or allied areas.
RAM Report 7 |
Contact us
Website: www.raisingamathematician.com
raisingamathematician@gmail.com Email:
Our Supporters
Uttan Vividh Lakshyee Shikshan Sanstha, FEI Cargo, Thane Janata Sahakari Bank,
Dombivli Nagri Sahakari Bank, a lot of large-hearted individuals who loved the idea of
RAM TP and a team of dedicated volunteers from diverse backgrounds.

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