Secondary Teachers' Views of Mathematics: Exploring the Aesthetic Dimension of Mathematical Inquiry (Poster 16)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 6
  In Poster Session: Teaching, Teacher Preparation, and Teacher Professional Development in the Content Areas: A Poster Session (San Diego)

Abstract

Many professional mathematicians attribute aesthetics to their work, yet researchers and educators pay little attention to the aesthetic dimension of teaching and learning. Using Dewey’s phenomenological notion of aesthetic experience, this qualitative study investigated four secondary teachers’ aesthetic experience in mathematics. Analysis of data from interviews and classroom observations showed the evaluative and motivational roles of aesthetics in their learning of mathematics but not the generative role. The participants’ aesthetic experience intertwined with their identification with mathematics, views of themselves as learners, and beliefs about the nature of mathematics. The findings have significant implications for mathematics teaching, learning, and educational research, particularly pertaining to humanistic mathematics.

Author

• Rong-Ji Chen, California State University - San Marcos