More than 170 delegates from around the world will attend the seventh International Conference on Technology in Mathematics Teaching hosted by Bristol University and John Cabot City Technology College from Tuesday 26 July to Friday 29 July.

The conference brings together educators, researchers and developers with a common interest in enhancing the teaching and learning of mathematics - at any level - through the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

The conference will tackle a number of subjects including how the introduction of tools such as calculators can reshape not just the teaching and learning of arithmetic but the mathematical sense and structure given to the operation. 

It will also explore how teachers use technology to support the teaching and learning of mathematics and look at new, creative forms of assessment that move away from traditional paper-based exams.

One of the keynote speakers will be Dr Stephen Wolfram, President and CEO of Wolfram Research and creator of Mathematica, the widely-used computer program hailed as a major advance in computing when first released in 1988. 

Dr Wolfram will speak on 'New Directions in Science & Mathematics and their Implications for Education'.

Prof Rosamund Sutherland, of Bristol University's Graduate School of Education and one of the conference organisers, said: "We are delighted to be holding such an important conference in Bristol. 

"The event is a pioneering collaboration between a school and a university. 

"John Cabot City Technology College is an ultra-modern state comprehensive school and is superbly equipped with ICT resources while Bristol University's Graduate School of Education has an international reputation for its research and development work in the field of ICT."