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Search forHospital is the focus of maths in the real world
Monday, August 25, 2008, 10:50
The hospital is to feature in a Level Up Maths and bosses hope it will encourage young people to think about the kinds of career open to them in the NHS, especially if they work hard at maths.
The textbook is being published for 11 to 14 year olds (Key Stage 3) ready for the new school year starting in September.
Publisher Katherine Pate said: "This is an inspirational new course which will provide interesting maths.
"Each topic starts with a colourful feature showing examples of real people who use that kind of maths in their lives and work.
"This means pupils will begin each lesson with a clear idea of why it is useful to get to grips with each topic."
Torbay Hospital's histopathology laboratory has been used to illustrate the text book's unit on fractions.
Medical scientist Kirsty James is shown at work behind a microscope, analysing blood samples.
Laboratory manager Nigel Kenneison said: "It was interesting working with the author as, although we use mathematics in our everyday work, we hadn't thought of it as using fractions or the maths skills we'd learnt at school."
Hospital spokesman Caroline Hill said: "It has been an eye-opener to see what kinds of mathematics are covered in this book, and to recognise just how much of it is very relevant to our working lives here at the hospital — not just in our labs or when calculating drug doses but even in what I do on a daily basis away from a clinical or scientific environment, in the press office.
"It is so important to be able to understand data and statistics and to work out what they are really telling you."
Publisher Katherine Pate added: "Without generous contributors like Torbay Hospital, Level Up Maths could not have achieved this exciting innovation in maths education.
"A whole generation of teenagers will benefit by the cheerful generosity of contributors sharing their everyday experiences of maths at work."
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