Examining Social Situation of Development, With Two Students of Mathematics at Grade 4, in Different National Contexts

• In Event: Roundtable Session 37
  In Roundtable Session: The Culture and Context of Learning and Development

Abstract

This paper examines the social situation of development of two students Nelly and Brian, as they learn mathematics in respective grade four classrooms in Sweden and USA. Nested within larger action research projects, both students are found to exhibit developmental crisis, as they transit from familiar environments in primary grades and meet newer demands at middle school. Nelly and Brain's instructional environments, internal positions with respect to these, leading activities they participate in, along with the social positions expected of them, inform their social situations of development. Such a study sheds light on the nature of occurrence and ways with which to ameliorate personal crisis, which students routinely face while learning mathematics.

Authors

• Rupam Saran, Medgar Evers College - CUNY

• Sharada Gade, Umeå University