ICME-15: Come and be counted!

ICME-15 Convenor, and ICME-15 International Program Committee Chair

It is an honour and a great pleasure for me to invite you to what will be a truly unique and exciting initiative for mathematics and statistics education in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

The successful bid to host ICME-15 in Sydney in 2024 is the work of the Consortium for Mathematical Education (CoME), a group of eight leading national organisations in the mathematical sciences. I had the privilege of leading the work of CoME in recent years, and was honoured to accept the nomination as Convenor of ICME-15.

The broad base of commitment for this initiative is a clear indication of the importance these leading organisations ascribe to supporting the further development of mathematics and statistics education.

CoME members are determined to engage and involve colleagues across the region in order to make ICME-15 an important opportunity for mathematics teachers, lecturers, researchers, teacher educators, consultants, curriculum developers and other mathematics education professionals in Australia and across the Asia-Pacific region. Our aim is for ICME-15 to be an inclusive event at which people who are passionate about mathematics and statistics education can come together, and connect with like-minded colleagues from around the globe to create lasting local, regional and global legacies in our field.

I have attended all but one ICME since 2004, and it would be an privilege to welcome ICME-15 delegates to my own country in 2024.

I encourage you to stay in touch for updates and we welcome your input to help make ICME-15 a resounding success.

Prof. Kim Beswick
ICME-15 Convenor;
Director, Gonski Institute for Education, University of New South Wales;
Professor of Mathematics Education

I well remember attending my first ICME, in Copenhagen in 2004 as a new PhD graduate taking tentative steps in academia. This was my first international congress, and I recall being daunted at having Tom Cooney, whom I had cited in my thesis, respond to my Topic Study Group paper.  The experience was one of encouragement that gave me confidence to pursue mathematics education research. I now have the privilege of being an Associate Editor of the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, of which Tom Cooney was the founding editor.

Kim Beswick

ICME-15 Local Organising Committee Chair

In 1984 Australia created a significant global legacy when we hosted the Congress in Adelaide. Forty years on, in 2024, Australia’s mathematics community seeks to create a new legacy for the next generation, by growing mathematics education capacity through developing and sharing programs that translate globally, especially within the Asia-Pacific region, as well as locally. Australia’s vision is for a congress at which extensive collaboration nurtures ongoing professional connections and drives the creation of tangible education resources.

As a future-focused community, an Australian Congress will seek to embrace the technologies available to the global mathematics community to optimise both the delivery of the Congress and the sharing of outputs and outcomes.

Highlighting the 40th anniversary of Australia’s first ICME will demonstrate the lasting impact of ICME5 in 1984, and set the challenge for a similar legacy to bear fruit in the coming years, not just in Australia, but, with the facilities of contemporary communication technologies, across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

Will Morony
ICME-15 Local Organising Committee Chair;
Former CEO of the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers (AAMT)

As a young teacher in Adelaide I was lucky enough to attend ICME5 in 1984. It provided the opportunity to talk with and learn from colleagues from all over the world who shared my passion for the teaching and learning of mathematics. The exchanges were mutual and those colleagues were also interested in and valued my ideas and practices as such that it was incredibly affirming in terms of what we were trying to achieve in our school. In many respects, it was a pivotal event in my professional career, giving me the confidence and inspiration to actively engage with others in ways that eventually saw me take on leadership roles in the field. I hope that I can be part of creating the same opportunities for another generation of teachers.

Will Morony