Multicultural Mathematics - Softcover

Nelson, David; Joseph, George Gheverghese; Williams, Julian

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0192822411 ISBN 13: 9780192822413

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1993

Synopsis

The history of mathematics is one of creation and discovery in many parts of the world, and yet few people realize that Pythagoras' Theorem was known to the Babylonians a thousand years before the Greeks. Similarly, Pascal's Triangle of 1645 was actually used in practical ways much earlier in China. Indeed, there is a rich field of African, Middle Eastern, and Asian mathematics that is often ignored in the teaching of the subject. Mathematics, then, is an international language and field of study that knows no barriers between race, culture, or creed. How can we exploit this rich heritage not only to improve the teaching of mathematics, but to prepare our children for life in a multicultural society?
This pioneering book is the first to explore ways of helping schoolchildren understand the universality of mathematics, and at the same time making it a more enjoyable, relevant, and rewarding enterprise. Multicultural Mathematics brings together the experience of three well-known teachers and researchers who offer suggestions and guidance for an important new approach to education. Written for parents, teachers, and administrators, and with technical mathematics kept to a minimum, this book discusses the theories behind multicultural mathematics, shows how this method can be applied within the core of any elementary curriculum, and explores the educational and social benefits of this new approach to teaching mathematics.

About this title

About the Author

About the Authors:
David Nelson is Lecturer in Education at the University of Manchester. He is also the author of The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics. George Gheverghese Joseph is Senior Lecturer in Economic and Social Statistics at the University of Manchester. His most recent publication is The Crest of the Peacock. Julian Williams is Senior Lecturer in Education and Director of the Mechanics in Action Project at the University of Manchester. He is also the author of Practical Projects with Mathematics.

Reviews

Many of us think that the debate over multicultural education is just an American problem, but this book deals with multicultural education in Great Britain. Of all school subjects, the one that most people would consider to be universal in nature and not dependent upon cultural context is mathematics. Yet the first essays in this collection of papers explain how cultural biases unintentionally slip into the school mathematics curriculum and make it more difficult for minority students to master the subject matter. The remaining chapters give examples of non-Western contributions to mathematics that are suitable for insertion into classroom presentations as a means of alleviating the problem in some measure. Recommended for teachers of school mathematics.
- Harold D. Shane, Baruch Coll., CUNY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0192822411
• ISBN 13: 9780192822413
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 238