What assumptions do you hold about mathematics? In class we will spend time thinking, talking, and challenging what mathematics might be, and the impact that traditional definitions have on us as learners. Using Lakoff and Nunez's notion of the mythology that surrounds math, (what they refer to as 'the romance of mathematics' from their book Where Mathematics Comes From) we will look at traditional notions of mathematics and bump it up against a reconceptualized view. Figuring out our own positioning towards mathematics is critical to becoming a reflective teacher of mathematics. What part of the romance do you believe? How does what you think about mathematics affect how you teach it?
What, for you, are the big ideas in mathematics? How, if at all, have your beliefs about mathematics shifted? What is it that you will need to know, to read, to figure out, to study to gain a better understanding of the nature of mathematics as something that might be a living discipline, a human activity?
Reuben Hersh is an American mathematician who has written extensively about mathematics. He takes up his ideas from What is Mathematics, Really? in the following interview that I would like you to read: What Kind of Thing Is a Number? A Talk with Reuben Hersh Be sure to click on THE TALK at the bottom of the page to read the entire interview. He delves into his view of mathematics, the teaching of mathematics, and how our stance towards mathematics impacts how and what we teach.
Please also work your way through Chapters 1 and 2, if you have not yet done so to help you with your thinking. Looking forward to hearing your ideas in class!
