Maths Education Laboratory (LEM) | ESE-IPVC

Description of the space

The Maths Education Laboratory (LEM) is a Scientific Pedagogical Unit based at the School of Education of the Polytechnic Institute of Viana do Castelo (ESE-IPVC). This space consists of two interconnected rooms, in an open space perspective, organised in such a way as to promote an environment conducive to the teaching and learning of mathematics. The LEM seeks to foster the development of activities of a differentiated nature, from a dynamic, interactive and flexible perspective, and aims to produce, develop and disseminate scientific, pedagogical and didactic knowledge in the area of maths education and provide services to the community.

Objectives

LEM's main objectives are:

To design and support research and intervention projects that contribute to increasing knowledge in the field of maths education;
To design, develop, support and evaluate teaching and learning paths and strategies, as well as creative and innovative teaching materials, based on the latest research trends in maths education at different levels of education;
Contribute to greater mathematical literacy among students and education professionals, as well as the general population in a highly competitive and technological global society;
To train (future) educators and teachers in the use of teaching-learning methodologies, strategies and specific resources for effective maths teaching;
Support (future) teachers and educators in developing studies/teaching experiences/projects in the field of maths education;
Support educators and cooperating teachers in the teaching and learning of maths at all levels of education, particularly during the intervention in the educational context of ESE-IPVC students;
Implement ongoing training and specialisation courses in line with current trends in education and that meet the training needs of education professionals;
Identifying and responding to the educational needs of the local community;
Designing, building and publishing documents and materials to support research and pedagogical action through LEM Produções;
Supporting the organisation of scientific and educational events (meetings, seminars, conferences, scientific meetings, exhibitions and other similar initiatives);
Establishing partnerships with similar national and international institutions to develop collaborative projects in the field of maths education;
Establishing partnerships with educational bodies in the region for the development of projects leading to academic success in maths.

Description of the main equipment

General equipment

2 interactive whiteboards
1 digital interactive whiteboard
1 3D printer
2 overhead projectors
21 desktops
3 laptops
20 tablets
1 film camera
5 cameras
3 portable video projectors and 1 pocket video projector
1 video conferencing system
1 laminator
1 guillotine

Specific equipment for teaching and learning maths in the early years

Manipulable materials (e.g. geoplanes, logic blocks, transparent solids; Cuisenaire material)
Elementary and scientific calculators
Diverse games and puzzles (e.g. tangrans, construction games, dominoes)
Travelling exhibition ‘Looking for Patterns’ - Set of themed posters and interactive mathematical tasks
Travelling exhibition ‘ExpoMatCid’ - set of themed roll-up posters with life tasks and interactive puzzles

Materials produced through LEM productions

Support tools for different curricular units
Support texts for the different curricular units (e.g., Scientific Writing; Manipulable Materials)
Manipulatives and games (e.g. 10 frames; Sudoku; Fractions within figures; Dice challenges)