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Cultural horizons for mathematics

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Abstract

As a result of a number of government reports, there have been numerous systemic changes in Indigenous education in Australia revolving around the importance of partnerships with the community. A forum with our local Dubbo community established the importance of working together and developed a model which placed the child in an ecological perspective that particularly noted the role of Elders and the place of the child in the family. However, there was also the issue of curriculum and mathematics education to be addressed. It was recognised that a colonised curriculum reduces the vision of what might be the potential for Indigenous mathematics education. This paper reports on the sharing that developed between our local community and some researchers and teachers from Sweden, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand. It has implications for recognising the impact of testing regimes, the teaching space, understanding the ways children learn, the curriculum, and teacher education. As a result of these discussions, a critical pedagogy that considers culture and place is presented as an ecocultural perspective on mathematics education. This perspective was seen as critical for the curriculum and learning experiences of Indigenous children.

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Notes

  1. New South Wales is a state of Australia having the largest population. Sydney is its capital, situated 400 km away from our city. In Australia, education is a state matter but there are now national assessments and curriculum statements. The results of these assessments are noted with a strong realisation of their limitations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Charles Sturt University, Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia

    Kay Owens, Maria Bennet, Dominic O’Sullivan, Libbey Murray, Patricia Logan, Beatrice Murray, Alissa Miller & John Nolan

  2. Papua New Guinea Institute of Research, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

    Patricia Paraides

  3. Luleå University of Technology, Luleå, Sweden

    Ylva Jannok Nutti, Gunilla Johansson & Vappu Sunnari

  4. Macquarie Anglican Grammar School, Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia

    Melissa McNair

  5. Dubbo College, Senior Campus, New South Wales, Australia

    Alca Simpson

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  1. Kay Owens
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  2. Patricia Paraides
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  3. Ylva Jannok Nutti
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  4. Gunilla Johansson
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  19. Christine Ohrin
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Correspondence to Kay Owens.

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P. Taylor (deceased)

Forum Contributors: Rod Towney, Gary Shipp, Ian Pritchell, Belinda Downey, Debbie Morrow, Dina Moore, Carolyn Thurston, Kerry Perrin, Melissa Smith, Beverley Moriarty, Jean Brain, Judy Carter, Diane McNaboe

CSU reviewers: TamsinMeaney, Bob Perry

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Owens, K., Paraides, P., Jannok Nutti, Y. et al. Cultural horizons for mathematics. Math Ed Res J 23, 253–274 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13394-011-0014-3

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