This article presents several mathematics problems on the same theme that can be used in class or for independent study. It is very difficult to show students how mathematics research is done by mathematicians, so the author first introduces a problem that can be tackled solely by arithmetic and then gives an idea of how a mathematician might…

The short activity presented in this article continues a discussion related to the value of golden ratio explorations in secondary mathematics, and acts as a companion to the earlier paper in this journal (Crawley, 2023). Exploring meaningful ways in which teachers can elicit students' interest and engagement in mathematics is vital, and…

In this article, the history of the golden ratio is discussed to demonstrate how exploring this ratio would be of value in a secondary mathematics classroom. Following this, a mathematical activity related to the golden ratio that is suitable for students from Year 7 to Year 12 is outlined.

This is the second of two articles on the life and mathematical legacy of the Indian mathematician Ramanujan, who died one hundred years ago. The first article, "The Life and Times of the Indian Mathematician Ramanujan (1887-1920)" (EJ1269466), which appeared in the previous issue of "Australian Mathematics Education Journal,"…

In mathematics, there are countless connections between apparently unrelated topics. Students often find these relationships interesting, and they contribute to expanding their mathematical repertoires. This article describes one of these unusual connections, between the sum of periodic functions and the commensurable and incommensurable numbers.…

This article details a high school classroom activity in which algebra tiles are used to help students gain a conceptual understanding of completing the square. The activity utilises the eight elements of effective mathematics education suggested in the National Council of Teacher of Mathematics' (NCTM's) "Principles to action: Ensuring…