A mock Oxford interview and seminars for science teachers on creating rainbows using colourless liquids and the physics of volcanic eruptions will be some of the events on offer at a conference for teachers hosted by Oxford University.
Teachers from 30 schools in the Southwest, including 12 in the greater Bristol area, are among those targeted by the Maths & Science Teachers’ Conference hosted by Oxford University.
The free one-day event on Wednesday 4 July in Bristol is designed to help teachers with resources for bright students interested in science and maths. It also offers insights into the Oxford admissions process specifically in maths and science subjects in order to help teachers encourage more bright state school students to apply to Oxford.
The day of seminars will take place at the At-Bristol Science Learning Centre, and will include practical work in purpose-built teaching laboratories and topics that teachers will be able to develop in their own institutions.
Maryam Ahmed attended New College Swindon and has just finished her final year studying Engineering at Christ Church, Oxford. She will be one of the students helping out at the conference and says: ‘At school, I enjoyed Maths and Science but I wasn't really sure what a degree in these subjects would involve.
‘Thanks to an amazing A-Level teacher who encouraged me to attend events like the Royal Aeronautical Society Women's Day, I realised that an Engineering degree would set me up for an exciting, varied, international career and enable me to make a real contribution to society. Girls in particular can feel that science isn't for them, which is why it's so important for teachers to provide role models, and demonstrate that STEM subjects are open to anyone with an enquiring mind.’
Dr Martin Christlieb from Oxford’s Department of Oncology is an admissions tutor for Oxford’s Biological Sciences course and is taking part in the conference. He says: ‘Oxford University produces amazing groundbreaking research in science subjects – my department, Oncology, works to develop more effective cancer treatments. This sort of research needs graduates with backgrounds in biology, chemistry, physics, maths, and engineering alike. An important part of our work is training the next generation of maths and science researchers who will continue this work. That process starts with bright students in school; we want to spark their interest in maths and science, but also show them that new medicine needs scientists and medics working together.
‘Being involved with teachers through conferences like this one is a great chance to showcase resources and ideas to interest and challenge bright science students in schools. It gives us a chance to show students that they can make a difference to cancer by studying science and maths. It also gives us a chance to show teachers what the admissions process at Oxford is like and how they can support their students in making the best application possible.
‘Ultimately it’s about working with teachers to get the right messages out there to students interested in science subject: It’s really important that those who are good at and like maths and science keep trying to get better at it and learn to truly love it. There are so many ways in which their skills can be put to use, and they can make a real difference in the world by following their interests and developing their skills. And if that means aiming high and applying to Oxford, we want to make sure they get the best support and encouragement in their application as possible.’
For more information and photographs, please contact Julia Paolitto in the Press Office, Oxford University on 01865 280 531 or press.office@admin.ox.ac.uk
Notes for Editors:
The Oxford University Maths & Science Teachers’ Conference will be held on Wednesday 4 July 2012 in Bristol and is coordinated by Oxford’s Undergraduate Admissions Office. For more information see: http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate_courses/events_and_outreach/information_for_teachers_and_advisors/events_near_you/oxford_mathsci.html
The aims of the conference are:
1) to equip teachers with additional tools and resources to support maths and science students in their own schools and colleges who are considering progressing to STEM subjects at Oxford and other leading universities;
2) to offer teachers a stimulating programme of seminars with leading Oxford tutors to extend their own interest in these subjects, as well as the students they teach;
3) to provide advice and guidance on the Oxford admissions process from identifying and supporting candidates to admissions testing and interviews
The conference will include sessions led by experienced Oxford tutors from across the collegiate University with extensive first-hand knowledge of our admissions processes. It will also feature current undergraduate students who are able to talk about their own experiences of studying maths, sciences and related subjects, such as Computer Science and Materials Science.
The seminar options will include:
Chemistry: Colourful solutions – Creating chemical rainbows
Biological Sciences: ‘Can’t win; can’t break even; can’t stop playing the game:’ discovering new ideas about cancer
Physics: ‘The Zooniverse online citizen science project’
Computer Science: GeomLab – Exploring Computer Science
Earth Sciences: Volcanoes – unlocking the geological record to assess current volcanic hazard
Mathematics: The spread of a disease through a population
Engineering Science: An engineer’s perception of the retina
The conferences are part of Oxford University’s work with teachers and schools as a significant portion of its outreach work; more broadly, the Oxford University admissions team has several areas of activity that are designed to provide opportunities for students from schools with limited HE application support to find out more about what Oxford is looking for in candidates. These are not activities designed to give undue advantage to students from disadvantaged backgrounds, but rather to encourage those students who might be able to make a competitive application to Oxford but do not have the proper support or information about how to apply and give themselves the best chance:
Working with schools: The University has contact with 78% of all schools offering post-16 education.
Working with teachers: The University over the past several years has focussed an enormous amount of effort in working with teachers, allowing Oxford to help many cohorts of students via their teachers rather than individual students in any given year. Activities include a series of annual regional teachers' conferences; a one-day event for Oxford's own PGCE programme (run through Oxford’s school of education), which trains new teachers being sent mainly into comprehensive schools; and similar programmes working with Teach First participants.
Summer schools: Oxford’s flagship access programme is its UNIQ summer school, which takes students from UK state schools who have strong academic backgrounds and allows them to attend a week-long summer school where they get a chance to study subjects in-depth and learn what living and studying at Oxford is like. The scheme has been effective: 69% of 2010 participants applied to Oxford, and 39% of those won offers (against an overall success rate of 21% for Oxford applicants in that year). That means that 27% of all 2010 UNIQ participants hold offers from Oxford. By 2014 there will be 1,000 places on the summer schools (up from 500), covering every course Oxford offers. Several of the colleges also run summer school and outreach activities in addition to those run centrally.
