Making Cultural Assets Count: Lessons Learned From Piloting Real-Life Math Tasks in Yucatec Maya Classrooms

• In Event: Moscone Center North Roundtable Session 1
  In Roundtable Session: Cultural and Language Resources in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics

Abstract

This paper is part of a larger study describing the triumphs and challenges of developing math tasks that build on community funds of knowledge in a Yucatec Maya middle school. The larger study: (1) documents two community approaches to problem solving; (2) illustrates that Yucatec Maya villagers possess specialized mathematical expertise; and (3) demonstrates that local middle schools miss opportunities to build on these assets during instruction (Blind, 2017; Blind, 2019). This paper describes piloting two open-ended, culturally-informed, real-life math tasks that invite Yucatec Maya students to use community approaches to solve math problems in groups. Tasks were co-created with indigenous cultural insiders and a community advisory group. Results have implications for designing inclusive math instruction in US community colleges.

Author

• Felicia A. Darling, Santa Rosa Junior College