“Math is Hard” Belief Portrayed in Media
As a math education researcher and teacher, I am fascinated by all things related to the teaching and learning of mathematics, particularly at the K-12 level with topics like algebraic thinking, proportional thinking, mental math, number sense, and integer thinking some of my favorite topics.
As a consumer of articles, websites, images, and information in general, I often cannot help but see mathematics portrayed in a particular way. You can imagine what that way is, if you also grew up in the United States: math is hard, it is scary, it gives me anxiety, it is only for smart people, you’re either born with it or not. The list goes on, unfortunately.
I feel lucky to know that many math education researchers are interested in examining these issues in depth by looking at the disposition, beliefs, and attitudes people hold about mathematics.
I would love to mentor a future teacher on a project that seeks to identify some of these negative messages in the media and counter back with their own creation. This project could be the mixture of mathematics, teaching, technology, social media, and counseling all in one! The last three articles I posted certainly would provide good data to analyze.
As Jo Boaler, math educator at Standard and believer that math is for everyone, says, ‘Viva la revolution!’
http://www.ryot.org/8th-grade-math-problem-stumping-internet/928323
http://www.ryot.org/math-problem-third-grade-vietnam-students-doctorates/932756
http://www.ryot.org/math-question-is-stumping-the-internet/934258
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