27 January 2021

MAV would like to congratulate Peter Maher, of Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School, for his Order of Australia! Peter has been a longtime supporter of MAV, and we feel this is a well deserved award that should be celebrated widely.

In the Australia Day Honours 2021 Peter Maher was awarded the Order of Australia for his contribution to Education - particularly Mathematics. Peter has taught since 1976 at Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School and has been the Mathematics co-ordinator at the Boys’ Junior School Campus since 1981. Over that time Peter has guided the learning of thousands of students and led professional development for hundreds of teachers.

Peter is a very active member of The Mathematical Association of Victoria, conducting Year 5 MAV Games Days for over a decade and being a judge in the Maths Talent Quest for many years. PEGS was one of the first schools to be granted Maths Active Schools status by the MAV in recognition of its dynamic and highly successful developmental program for both students and teachers.

In recent years Peter has been recognised by the MAV for outstanding contributions to Mathematics education, and by the Australasian Problem Solving Mathematical Olympiad Committee for his contribution to the teaching of problem solving.

Peter is the author of over 30 Maths books designed to improve the teaching of the subject in areas such as mental arithmetic, Maths games, engaging homework tasks, problem solving and the use of calculators.

Peter’s passion for teaching Mathematics centers upon his belief in the need to engage students through the presentation of meaningful “life worthy” activities, the need to develop creative and original problem solvers and the desire to demonstrate the inherent beauty that lies within the mathematics as a subject.

We wish Peter the best as he continues his education career journey