Fostering an Inclusively Relevant Mathematics Environment: The Case for Combining Social-Justice and Utility-Value Approaches

• In Event: Creating and Interrogating Inclusive Mathematics Environments: Considerations, Barriers, and Recommendations for Practice and Policy

Abstract

Objectives. Despite a common belief that mathematics is neutral, a critical analysis reveals a legacy of mathematics education that has catered to the dominant (white, middle-class) culture. However, there is increasing awareness that mathematics education should be more relevant to all students’ lived experiences. We review the theoretical and empirical basis for two very different approaches to promoting relevance in the classroom (utility-value interventions and teaching and learning math for social justice) and suggest a way forward to combine those two approaches to create more inclusive math learning environments for all students.

Theoretical Frameworks. “Relevance” has been conceptualized a number of ways in educational research. We focus on personal relevance and cultural relevance. Work on personal relevance primarily focuses on making topics more personally meaningful to students by emphasizing their utility (usefulness) to foster individual motivation, interest, and performance (see Priniski et al., 2018, for a review). Cultural relevance is exemplified by work on culturally responsive teaching (Gay, 2000) and culturally relevant pedagogy (Ladson-Billings, 1995). These approaches aim to connect topics to students’ lived experiences (especially for students from marginalized or minoritized communities), foster the development of cultural competency, and promote sociopolitical consciousness.

To demonstrate potential synergies for fostering inclusive middle grades mathematics environments, we review literature on utility-value interventions (UVIs) and teaching and learning math for social justice (TLMSJ), which arise from personal and cultural relevance perspectives, respectively. UVIs are tasks (often writing assignments) that encourage students to connect what they’re learning to their own lives (e.g., Hulleman & Haraciewicz, 2009). TLMSJ approaches mathematics through real-life applications, empowering students to use math to identify and (prepare to) rectify injustices (e.g., Gutstein, 2006).

Methods and Results. We conducted a conceptual review of approximately 150 scholarly works identified by searching EBSCOhost, ERIC, and PsychInfo for math* + "social justice" + "Middle school" and for “utility value” + “middle school.” We also examined the references of these articles and searched Google Scholar to identify additional sources.

Our review suggests that these literatures could be complementary and even synergistic. For UVIs, recent work is beginning to integrate principles of cultural relevance to adapt the intervention for students from marginalized and minoritized communities (e.g., Gray et al., 2020). This process could be informed by TLMSJ scholarship. For TLMSJ, many projects have elements designed to make the projects more personally meaningful. We argue that these efforts could be informed by UVI scholarship. Furthermore, we argue that methodological and epistemological differences between these literatures can be leveraged to create a richer, stronger evidence base for inclusively relevant mathematics teaching that will be speak to a broader range of stakeholders than either alone.

Significance. If educational researchers and practitioners are to come together to accept educational responsibility and address challenges to equity and inclusion, efforts are needed to bridge disciplines and epistemologies to create high-impact theory and research. We present synergies across UVIs and TLMSJ as one example of how this work can be accomplished collaboratively to improve inclusivity in middle grades math education.

Authors

• Stacy J. Priniski, Michigan State University

• Dustin Thoman, San Diego State University