Nigel Atkins
Post Held/ Role in Organisation:
Principal lecturer, Joint Honours Mathematics Field Director, Further Mathematics Centre (London SW) line manager and MathsAid project leader.
Academic Qualifications:
- 1984: PhD (Dynamic Oceanography), Kingston Polytechnic (CNAA)
- 1979: BSc (Mathematics) First, Kingston Polytechnic (CNAA)
Professional Society Memberships:
- Member of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA)
Other posts held/experience:
- From 2000 until August 2005: Deputy Head of the School of Mathematics at Kingston University.
- Chartered Mathematician, Chartered Scientist and University Teaching Fellow 2005
Teaching interests:
Experience of teaching on a wide range of Higher Education courses in mathematics including service teaching to those studying for scientific and engineering qualifications along with pre-teacher training enhancement courses.
This covers most applicable subject areas and particularly, mathematical modelling, function approximation, Fourier series, Fourier transformations, Laplace transformations, differential equations, optimisation and discrete mathematics.
Research Interests:
Current active is in the field of teaching and learning and supporting diversity in Higher Education. Particular interests in the revival of mathematical interest and skill sets in the community through local University and national strategies, the supply of mathematics school teachers, and the use of computer algebra systems or spreadsheets in teaching. Other fields include radar tracking in a cluttered environment, multi-radar tracking and dynamic oceanography.
Consultancy/ external work:
Since 1988, extensive radar and tracking related work for Siemens Plessey Systems, British Aerospace Systems and Analyticon Ltd.
Recent Publications (last 5 years):
- May, S, Gay, J, Atkins, N & Marks-Maran, D (Submitted to the Journal of Vocational Education and Training). Preparing potential teachers for the transition from employment to teacher training: An evaluative case study of a Maths Enhancement Course
- Atkins, N, May, S & Marks-Maran, D (Submitted to the Journal of Access Policy and Practice 2007). A Civic University's Approach to the “Mathematics Problem” in Society
- Atkins, N, May, S & Marks-Maran, D (2005). Widening participation in subjects requiring data handling skills: the MathsAid Project, Journal of Further and Higher Education, 29, 4, 353-365.
