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The naming of the Learning Centre is an honour that recognizes all of Eric Muller's outstanding contributions to mathematics teaching and learning at Brock University. This includes the development of the concurrent education programs, as well as his sustained dedication to the broader mathematics community, including OAME/AOEM, where he founded the Golden Section Chapter. We invite you to celebrate the contributions of this trailblazer of mathematics education in Ontario. Dr. Eric Muller joined Brock University in 1967 after completing his Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics at the University of Sheffield (England). At that time, Brock University was only in its third year of existence, with 11 departments and about 700 students. Over his many decades at Brock, Eric wore a variety of hats. In addition to the significant role he played in the development and teaching of the undergraduate mathematics courses, his other contributions included serving on the University Senate, seven Presidential Committees, and the Board of Governors. Eric will always be respected and celebrated for his dedication to mathematics education.
The naming of the Learning Centre is an honour that recognizes all of Eric Muller's outstanding contributions to mathematics teaching and learning at Brock University. This includes the development of the concurrent education programs, as well as his sustained dedication to the broader mathematics community, including OAME/AOEM, where he founded the Golden Section Chapter. We invite you to celebrate the contributions of this trailblazer of mathematics education in Ontario.
Dr. Eric Muller joined Brock University in 1967 after completing his Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics at the University of Sheffield (England). At that time, Brock University was only in its third year of existence, with 11 departments and about 700 students. Over his many decades at Brock, Eric wore a variety of hats. In addition to the significant role he played inthe development and teaching of the undergraduate mathematics courses, his other contributions included serving on the University Senate, seven Presidential Committees, and the Board of Governors. Eric will always be respected and celebrated for his dedication to mathematics education.
In the 1970's, his work led to the integration of the St. Catharines' Teachers College into Brock University. In the early 1990's, he played a major role initiating and developing a B.Sc. concurrent program at the Junior/Intermediate (Grades 4-8) levels, dedicated to improving the teaching of mathematics and science in elementary schools. This success led to developing further concurrent programs at the Senior level (Grades 9-12), and in 2003, Eric, by then cross-appointed with the Department of Pre-Service Education, led the design of a B.Sc. Honours concurrent program, with a major in Mathematics, to strengthen the teaching of mathematics in secondary schools. In 2001, Eric was part of a team that developed the MICA (Mathematics Integrated with Computer Applications) program (see www.ctuniversitymath.ca/mica-then-now/). This program includes cutting-edge mathematics courses combining mathematics and programming to solve sophisticated real-world problems. Recently, a course was added that was specifically designed for future teachers to meet the new Ontario school mathematics curriculum expectations related to coding.
In the early 1970's, there weren't many professional learning opportunities available to mathematics teachers. Recognizing this need, Eric began running an annual get-together for regional secondary school mathematics teachers, featuring presentations by fellow mathematicians and teachers. This group eventually turned into the Golden Section Chapter of OAME/AOEM. Until his retirement in 2004, Eric Muller remained involved in hosting the Golden Section annual meetings at Brock University. Eric also led the organization of the provincial OAME Conference at Brock University in 1976, and was a key supporter when the provincial conference returned there in 2010.
Over his decades of involvement with OAME/AOEM and the Golden Section, Eric was always creating opportunities to make math accessible to all students. He recognized the challenge of educators, including himself, "to help our students learn mathematics and enable them to use it in ways that they can appreciate its value, [and] experience its role in society" (Ontario Mathematics Gazette [Gazette], 57(3), p. 7). When the National Gallery of Canada's exhibition of works by M.C. Escher came to the Rodman Hall Arts Centre in St. Catharines in 1997, Eric seized this occasion to organize a Celebration of Mathematics and Visual Art. Prior to the opening of the exhibit, Eric pulled together mathematics and visual arts teachers from local school boards to create a collection of mathematics activities based on the exhibit's featured artwork. The activities developed were meant for use with all mathematics and visual arts students, regardless of grade level or their ultimate destination after high school. This booklet of activities was shared not only with school boards within the Golden Section; Eric and his writing team also travelled to other OAME/AOEM chapters and school boards across the province to share this resource. The booklet is presently being updated and will soon be available online.
Some of the other resources Eric developed, which have been used first by Golden Section teachers, and thereafter by other teachers from across the province include the following:
* Brock Bugs: A free two-player board game to discover some early probability concepts, which also turned and expanded into an online free computer game, E-Brock Bugs (www.brocku.ca/mathematics-science/ mathematics/brock-bugs-computer-game/). A description can be found in the March 2019 Gazette (pp. 38-42).
* Math Trails: Trails were developed for Niagara Falls and Welland Canal, which facilitate students exploring mathematics in familiar surroundings through guiding questions. These resources are currently being updated before they become available online.
Eric always embraced technology, and he's seen a lot of it! Whether it was box calculators with manual cranks, electrical calculators, Minitab software, or computer algebra systems such as Maple, he was always looking for ways to improve student learning and understanding of mathematics. Eric's ability to always keep moving forward serves as an inspiration to us all.
OAME/AOEM has had a long-standing relationship with the Fields Institute for Mathematical Sciences, but did you know that it was Eric who established the Fields MathEd Forum (www.fields.utoronto.ca/activities/workshops/mathed-forum)? Because of his connections with local, provincial, national, and international associations, Eric was invited by the Fields Institute to initiate a conversation among mathematics educators at all levels. Consequently, teachers at elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as instructors and faculty at colleges and universities, gathered to focus on mathematics education. So, since 1996, the Fields MathEd Forum has been meeting one Saturday each month during the academic year.
Throughout his career, Eric was the recipient of numerous awards, both for his teaching at Brock University and his work advancing mathematics education. Among these awards are the Lifetime Achievement Award (OAME, 2005), Fellow (Fields Institute for Research In Mathematical Sciences, 2002), the Michael Smith Award for Science Promotion (NSERC, 2002), the Adrien Pouliot Award for Significant and Sustained Contributions to Mathematics
Education (Canadian Mathematical Society, 1999), Award for Distinguished University Teaching of Mathematics (The Mathematical Association of America, Seaway Section, 1996), Award for Outstanding Contributions to University Teaching (Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, 1994), and the Brock Alumni Award for Teaching Excellence (1990).
In the early 1970's, Eric ran Saturday morning mathematics workshops for Grades 6-8 students that gave them opportunities to dive into and explore mathematics topics outside of their classroom curriculum. The workshops developed into summer mathematics and science day camps for local students, and eventually into one-week camps, where students would stay overnight on campus. Over the years, Eric wrote many articles for the OAME journal, the Ontario Mathematics Gazette. In a recent one, he noted:
The real challenge for many of our students who do not find it interesting to spend so much time learning the "rigid grammar" of mathematics, but would be more engaged if they could tell, read, and write stories. My view is that we are now in a much better position to balance our mathematics teaching between "grammar" and "stories." (Gazette, 57(3), p. 7)
Eric dedicated much of his time to making the math learning experience accessible and engaging for Brock students, future teachers, local youth, and the greater community. His extraordinary legacy will live on with the Eric Muller Math and Stats Learning Centre.
When speaking with teachers about the Celebration of Mathematics and Visual Art, Eric would often end with a thought that beautifully encapsulates our roles as mathematics educators: "Like an artist brings to life dead plants and other materials through composition, a mathematics educator should bring lifeless mathematics symbols and objects to life."
Reference
Muller, E. (2019). Promoting mathematics-Getting involved with OAME. Ontario Mathematics Gazette, 57(3), 7-8. www.tinyurl.com/3e757t5w ▲
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