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November 2, 2007

Math night offers real-life lessons

By David Lazenby

HOLLY POND — Several students at Holly Pond High School received an after-school math lesson from out-of-the-ordinary arithmetic instructors Tuesday — area professionals who taught on the importance of math in their occupations.

Math teachers Tracy Adams and April Hayes, organized Math Night, an event done in conjunction with a career unit Adams said students are currently studying.

The program was put on like a normal school day. Participants went from classroom to classroom to attend 15-minute mini seminars in which volunteers discussed the role math has in their fields. They fielded questions from students and their parents.

The primary lesson to be learned, according to Adams, is “What they are learning in high school mathematics classes applies to the real world.”

Between bells, the high school’s halls were bustling with participants moving from classroom to classroom.

“We had a really good turnout with students and parents,” said Adams. By her count, 152 people attended the event. Adams said students were offered an incentive for attending, 10 bonus points on a future math test.

Prior to Math Night, Adams assigned students to interview a few professionals about math in the work place.

“At first they were surprised, I think, at how much math several different careers use,” Adams said. Now, she said, “They realized a lot of careers out there are math-based.”

To drive home that point, Adams said a variety of careers were featured during Math Night.

“We’ve got graduate degrees here on down to some technical fields” Adams said.

A number of companies were represented during Math Night, including Cullman Regional Medical Center, Brassfield & Gorrie, Cullman Discount Pharmacy, Merchants Bank, Mueller Co., Baron Weather, Montana Woodworks, Cullman Obstetrics & Gynecology and CG Tech.

Greg Holcombe, a cabinet maker with Montana Woodworks, talked with students about the importance of math when working with blueprints.

Another participant, meteorologist Chris Carr, discussed how math is used in his profession to create model forecasts.

Banker Wanda Folds encouraged students to take as much math as possible in high school and in college.

“I’ve stressed to students tonight the importance of getting the math,” she said. “That can go a long way in promotions and getting more pay,” she said.

Adams said she hopes to make Math Night an annual event. She added the school plans to get feedback from students and their parents to determine how to improve future events.

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