New Cambridge-developed resources bring infectious diseases into the maths classroom

Cambridge mathematicians have developed a set of resources for students and teachers that will help them understand how maths can help tackle infectious diseases. From measles and flu to SARS and COVID, mathematicians help us understand and predict the epidemics that can spread through our communities, and to help us look at strategies that we may be able to use to contain them. The project, called Contagious Maths , was led by Professor Julia Gog from Cambridge's Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP) , and was supported by a Rosalind Franklin Award from the Royal Society. The curriculum-linked resources will give students between the ages 11 and 14 the opportunity to join researchers on the mathematical frontline to learn more about infectious disease spread, along with interactive tools to try mathematical modelling for themselves. Teachers receive full lesson plans, backed up by Cambridge research. "I've always loved maths. I was lucky enough to have amazing teachers at sixth form who challenged me and were 100% behind me pursuing maths at the highest level, but maths as it's taught in school can be highly abstract, so students often wonder what the point of maths even is," said Gog, who is also Director of the Millennium Maths Project.