Strategies for Promoting Social Justice in the Math Classroom

Authors

  • Ram Krishna Panthi Mahendra Ratna Campus, Tahachal, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Bal Chandra Luitel School of Education, Kathmandu University, Nepal
  • Shashidhar Belbase (SCOPUS ID: 55635820800), University College, Zayed University, United Arab Emirates http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3722-756X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12928/ijeme.v2i1.6809

Keywords:

social justice in mathematics education, interpretive inquiry, socially just pedagogy

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the strategies used by the teachers for promoting social justice in the math classroom. An interpretive qualitative research method was applied for data construction, analysis and interpretation through an iterative process. Three math teachers and their three students (one for each teacher) were selected as the research participants purposively from three public secondary schools in Kathmandu. Qualitative narratives were generated through in-depth interviews and classroom observations with each participant. The data analysis went through multiple layers of thematic analyses and interpretations of the narratives from the interview data. Altogether six themes emerged from the analysis of the data. These themes include--counseling and encouragement, group work and cooperative learning, linking mathematics to daily life, personalized way of instruction, promotion of joyful environment, and class work and projects.

References

Allen, K. C. (2012). Keys to successful group work: Culture, structure, nurture. Mathematics Teacher, 106(4), 308-312.

Bartell, T. G. (2013). Learning to teach mathematics for social justice: Negotiating social justice and mathematical goals. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 44(1), 129–163.

Belbase, S. (2013). Images, anxieties, and attitudes toward mathematics. International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science, and Technology, 1(4), 230-237.

Belbase, S., Luitel, B. C., & Taylor, P. C. (2008). Autoethnography: A method of research and teaching for transformative education. Journal of Education and Research (JER), 1, 86-95.

Belbase, S. (2006). My journey of learning and teaching mathematics from traditionalisim to constructivism: A portrayal of pedagogical metamorphosis. M.Phil. Disseration, Kathmandu University, Nepal.

Berger, R. (2015). Now I see it, now I don't: Researcher's position and reflexivity in qualitative research. Qualitative Research, 15(2), 219–234.

Bhattachan, K. B. (2003). Indigenous nationalities and minorities in Nepal. A report submitted to Minority Rights Group International, London, UK.

Bold, C. (2012). Using narrative in research. London: Sage.

Bolyan, M. (2009). Engaging with issues of emotionality in mathematics teacher education for social justice. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 12(1), 427-443.

Bolyan, M. & Woolsey, I. (2016). Teacher education for social justice: Mapping identity spaces. Teaching and Teacher Education, 46(1), 62-71.

Brok, P.D., Fisher, D., & Scott, R. (2005). The importance of teacher interpersonal behaviour for student attitudes in Brunei primary science classes. International Journal of Science Education, 27(7), 765-779.

Bull, B. (2009). Policy implications of social justice in education. Ethics and Education, 4(2), 141-152.

Burton, L. (Ed.). (2003). Which way social justice in Mathematics education? London: Praeger.

Connor, C.M., Morrison, F.J., & Katch, L.E. (2004). Beyond the reading wars: Exploring the effect of child-instruction interactions on growth in early reading. Scientific Studies of Reading, 8(1), 305–336.

Constantine, M.G., Hage, S.M., Kindaichi, M.M., & Bryant, R.M. (2007). Social justice and multicultural issues: Implications for the practice and training of counsellors and counselling psychologist. Journal of Counseling and Development, 85(1), 24-29.

Curriculum Development Center (CDC). (2007). National curriculum framework for school education in Nepal. Sanothimi, Bhaktapur: Government of Nepal, Ministry of Education and Sports, Curriculum Development Centre.

Curriculum Development Centre (CDC). (2005). National curriculum framework for school education (pre-primary–12) in Nepal. Sanothimi, Bhaktapur: Government of Nepal, Ministry of Education and Sports, Curriculum Development Centre.

Emma, L. (2015). The use of mathematics in everyday life. Retrieved from http://everydaylife.globalpost.com on 6th July 2015.

Esmonde, I., & Caswell, B. (2010). Teaching mathematics for social justice in multicultural, multilingual elementary classrooms. Canadian Journal for Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education, 10(3), 244-254.

Falkenberg, T., & Noyes, A. (2010). Conditions for linking school mathematics and moral education: A case study. Teaching and teacher education, 26(4), 949-956.

Garii, B., & Appova, A. (2013). Crossing the great divide: Teacher candidates, mathematics and social Justice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 34, 198-213.

Gates, P. (2006). The place of equity and social justice in the history of PME. In A. Gutiérrez & P. Boero (Eds.), Handbook of research on the psychology of mathematics education: Past, present and future (pp. 367-402). Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

Gregson, S.A. (2013). Negotiating social justice teaching: One full time teacher’s practice viewed from the trenches. Journals for Research in mathematics education, 44(1), 164-198.

Gutiérrez, R. (2008). A gap-gazing ‟fetish in mathematics education? Problematizing research on the achievement gap. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 39(4), 357-364.

Gutiérrez, R. (2009). Embracing the inherent tensions in teaching mathematics from an equity stance. Democracy and Education, 18(3), 9-16.

Gutstein, E. (2006). Reading and writing the world with mathematics: Toward pedagogy for social justice. New York: Routledge.

Gutstein, E. (2009). Developing social justice mathematics curriculum from students’ realities. A case of Chicago public school. In W. Ayers, T. Quinn, & D. Stovall (Eds.), Handbook of social justice in education (pp. 690-698). New York: Routledge.

Harrison, L. (2015). Teaching social justice through mathematics: A self-study of bridging theory to practice. Middle Grades Review, 1(1), 1-12.

Hay, C. (2011). Interpreting interpretivism interpreting interpretations: The new hermeneutics of public administration. Public Administration, 89(1), 167–182

Hempel-Jorgensen, A. (2015). Working-class girls and childcentred pedagogy: What are the implications for developing socially just pedagogy? International Studies in Sociology of Education, 25(2), 132-149.

Jacques, D. (1991). Learning in groups. London: Kogan Page.

John, E.P. (2007). Finding social justice in education policy: Rethinking theory and approaches in policy research. New Directions for Institutional Research, 33 (Spring 2007).

Jones, J.M., Sander, J.B., & Booker, K.W. (2013). Multicultural competency building: Practical solutions for training and evaluating student progress. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 7(1), 12-22.

Keddie, A. (2011). Educating for diversity and social justice. New York: Routledge.

Kriflik, L. & Mullan, J. (2007). Strategies to improve student reaction to group work. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 4(1), 13-27.

Lamichhane, B. R., & Belbase, S. (2017). Images of mathematics held by undergraduate students. International Journal on Emerging Mathematics Education, 1(2), 147-168.

Lim, C. S., & Pateman, N. A. (2013). The politics of equity and access in teaching and learning mathematics. In M. A. (Ken) Clements et al. (Eds.), Third international handbook of mathematics education (pp. 243-263). New York, NY: Springer.

Luitel, B. C. (2009). Culture, worldview and transformative philosophy of mathematics education in Nepal: A cultural-philosophical inquiry. Doctoral dissertation, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia.

Mathema, K. B., & Bista, M. B. (2006). Study on student performance in SLC: Main report. Kathmandu, Nepal: Ministry of Education and Sports & Education Sector Advisory Team.

Ministry of Education (MOE). (2017). School sector development plan 2016/17-2022/23. Kathmandu, Nepal: Government of Nepal/Ministry of Education.

Ministry of Education (MOE). (2015). Report on national assessment of student achievement (NASA) 2013. Bhaktapur, Nepal: The Author.

Moscardini, L. (2014). Developing equitable elementary mathematics classroom through teacher learning about children's mathematical thinking: Cognitively guided instruction as an inclusive pedagogy. Teaching and Teacher Education, 43, 69-79.

National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics and TODOS. (2016). Mathematics education through the lens of social justice: Acknowledgment, actions, and accountability. A Joint Position Statement from the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics and TODOS: Mathematics for All. Online accessed from: http://www.todos-math.org/

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). (1989). Curriculum and evaluation standards. Reston, VA: NCTM.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: NCTM.

Nurmi, J. E., Viljaranta, J., Tolvanen, A., & Aunola, K. (2012). Teachers adapt their instruction according to students’ academic performance. Educational Psychology, 32(5), 571-588.

Panthi, R. K., Luitel, B. C., & Belbase, S. (2018). Teachers’ perception of social justice in mathematics classrooms. REDIMAT Journal of Research in Mathematics Education, 7(1), 7-37.

Panthi, R. K., & Belbase, S. (2017). Teaching and learning issues in mathematics in the context of Nepal. European Journal of Educational and Social Sciences (EJESS), 2(1), 1-27.

Panthi, R. K. (2017). Social justice in mathematics classroom: An interpretive inquiry. M. Phil. Dissertation. Nepal: Kathmandu University.

Pekrun, R. (2006). The control-value theory of achievement emotions: Assumptions, corrllaries, and implications for educational research and practice. Educational Psychology Review, 18(4), 315-341.

Planas, N., & Civil, M. (2009). Working with mathematics teachers and immigrant students: An empowerment perspective. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 12(6), 391-409.

Plunkett, D. (2013). Dworkin's interpretivism and the pragmatics of legal disputes. Legal Theory, 19(3), 242-281.

Reissman, C.K. (2008). Narrative methods for the human sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Ronkainen, N.J., Watkins, I., & Ryba, T.V. (2016). What can gender tell us about the pre-retirement experiences of elite distance runners in Finland? A thematic narrative analysis. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 22(1), 37-45.

Rytivaara, A., & Vehkakoski, T. (2015). What is individual in individualized instruction? Five storylines of meeting individual needs at school. International Journal of Educational Research, 73, 12-22.

Sakiz, G., Pape, S.J., & Hoy, A.W. (2012). Does perceived teacher affective support matter for middle school students in mathematics classrooms? Journal of School Psychology, 50(2), 235-255.

Taylor, P.C., & Luitel, B.C. (2005). Overcoming culturally dislocated curricula in a transitional society: An autoethnographic journey towards pragmatic wisdom. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), SIG: Self-Study of Teacher Education Practices Montreal.

Thrupp, M., & Tomlinson, S. (2005). Introduction: education policy, social justice, and ‘complex hope’. British Educational Research Journal, 31(5), 549-556.

Tomlinson, C.A. (1999). The Differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD).

UNESCO Kathmandu Office. (2015). Education for all: National review report 2001 – 2015. Kathmandu, Nepal: The Author.

UNESCO Kathmandu Office. (2011). Multilingual education in Nepal: Hearsay and reality? Kathmandu, Nepal: The Author.

Villegas, A.M. (2007). Dispositions in teacher education: A look at social justice. Journal of Teacher Education, 58(5), 370-380.

Vomvoridi-Ivanovic, E., & McLeman, L. (2015). Mathematics teacher educators focusing on equity: Potential challenges and resolutions. Teacher Education Quarterly, 42(4), 83-100.

Webel, C. (2013). Classroom collaboration: Moving beyond helping. Mathematics Teacher, 106(6), 464-467.

Wright, P. (2016). Social justice in the mathematics classroom. London Review of Education, 14(2), 104-118.

Zhu, C. (2013). Students’ and teachers’ thinking styles and preferred teacher interpersonal behavior. The Journal of Educational Research, 106(5), 399-407.

Downloads

Published

2018-02-24

How to Cite

Panthi, R. K., Luitel, B. C., & Belbase, S. (2018). Strategies for Promoting Social Justice in the Math Classroom. International Journal on Emerging Mathematics Education, 2(1), 17–38. https://doi.org/10.12928/ijeme.v2i1.6809

Issue

IJEME, Vol. 2 No. 1, March 2018

Section

Articles

License

License and Copyright Agreement

In submitting the manuscript to the journal, the authors certify that:

  • They are authorized by their co-authors to enter into these arrangements.
  • The work described has not been formally published before, except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, thesis, or overlay journal. Please also carefully read the International Journal on Emerging Mathematics Education (IJEME) Author Guidelines at http://journal.uad.ac.id/index.php/IJEME/about/submissions#authorGuidelines
  • That it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere,
  • That its publication has been approved by all the author(s) and by the responsible authorities, tacitly or explicitly, of the institutes where the work has been carried out.
  • They secure the right to reproduce any material that has already been published or copyrighted elsewhere.
  • They agree to the following license and copyright agreement.

Copyright

Authors who publish with the International Journal on Emerging Mathematics Education (IJEME) agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.

 


Ciptaan disebarluaskan di bawah Lisensi Creative Commons Atribusi-BerbagiSerupa 4.0 Internasional.