The Narrowing of the Principles and Purposes of Mathematics Education: Three Decades of Media Reporting

• In Event: Roundtable Session 62
  In Roundtable Session: Education in the Media: Making “Sense” of Explicit and Implicit Messages

Abstract

Mathematics education has been a crucial issue in educational reform debates for the last several decades, from A National at Risk (1983, ANAR), No Child Left Behind (2002), and most recently, President Obama’s reauthorization of the America Competes Act. The discipline has increasingly been tied to economic and technological objectives in the midst of a globalized society, and the dominant discourse surrounding mathematics seems to reflect the focus on economic prosperity, both for the individual citizen and for the nation (Apple,1992; Borba & Skovsmore, 1997; Martin, 2008, Stanic, 1989; Valero, 2007).

While the importance of mathematics education is undeniable, there are diverging and perhaps even contradictory reasons for valuing such education and knowledge. Moreover, one has to wonder about the information available to the public regarding the discipline of mathematics, and how such a perception shapes and is shaped by educational research and policies, as well as societal beliefs about human equality and well being. Employing critical discourse analysis and frame analysis (Fairclough, 1995; Reese, 2007) to examine a representative sample of articles from The New York Times, the researcher analyzed how one news media outlet has framed the research and policy shifts in mathematics education from the release of ANAR (1983) to the recently reauthorized America Competes Act. Analysis revealed that discourses regarding the purposes of mathematics education have shifted in the last three decades to serve utilitarian aims over other alternatives, such as cognitive or traditional models. These results are further critiqued employing philosophical analysis to uncover the assumptions hidden within normative views regarding what societal values and beliefs ought to be reflected in public education. Understanding what values and beliefs are reflected in the media about the principles and purposes of education is important for educational researchers if they are to respond how educational research is used to inform the public and to what end.

Author

• Nataly Z. Chesky, SUNY - College at New Paltz