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High School Mathematics Lessons to Explore, Understand, and Respond to Social Injustice
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High School Mathematics Lessons to Explore, Understand, and Respond to Social Injustice

First Edition

With contributions from over 30 educators



April 2020 | 328 pages | Corwin

Empower students to be the change—join the teaching mathematics for social justice movement!

We live in an era in which students have —through various media and their lived experiences— a more visceral experience of social, economic, and environmental injustices. However, when people think of social justice, mathematics is rarely the first thing that comes to mind. Through model lessons developed by over 30 diverse contributors, this book brings seemingly abstract high school mathematics content to life by connecting it to the issues students see and want to change in the world.

Along with expert guidance from the lead authors, the lessons in this book explain how to teach mathematics for self- and community-empowerment. It walks teachers step-by-step through the process of using mathematics—across all high school content domains—as a tool to explore, understand, and respond to issues of social injustice including: environmental injustice; wealth inequality; food insecurity; and gender, LGBTQ, and racial discrimination. This book features:

  • Content cross-referenced by mathematical concept and social issues
  • Downloadable instructional materials for student use
  • User-friendly and logical interior design for daily use
  • Guidance for designing and implementing social justice lessons driven by your own students’ unique passions and challenges

Timelier than ever, teaching mathematics through the lens of social justice will connect content to students’ daily lives, fortify their mathematical understanding, and expose them to issues that will make them responsive citizens and leaders in the future.


 
Preface by NCTM Past-President Robert Berry and NCSM Past-President John Staley
 
Introduction
 
Part I
 
Chapter 1 Why is Social Justice and Why Does it Matter in Teaching Mathematics
 
What Do We Mean by Social Justice?
 
What is Teaching Mathematics for Social Justice
 
Why Social Justice in Mathematics Education
 
Reflection and Action
 
Chapter 2 Getting Ready for Classroom
 
Context Matters
 
Context Matters
 
When Matters
 
How Matters
 
Chapter 3 Instructional Tools for the Social Justice Mathematics Lesson
 
Establishing Goals
 
Assessign Purposefully
 
Teaching Equitably
 
Managing Discourse
 
Conclusion
 
Reflection and Action
 
Chapter 4 Teaching the Social Justice Mathematics Lesson
 
Social Justice Mathematics Framework
 
Planning to Implement SJML
 
Last Words Before You Go Teach
 
Conclusion
 
Reflection and action
 
Part II
 
Chapter 5 Number and Quantity
 
5.1 The Mathematics of Transformation Resistance by Mary Candance
 
5.2 Do Just Some Students Take Honors Course? By Basil Conway
 
5.3 LISTEN to GLSEN by Bryan Meyer and John W. Staley
 
5.4 Estimated Wealthy Distribution in USA and the World by Enrique Ortiz
 
Chapter 6 Algebra and Functions
 
6.1 Children at the Border: Looking at the Numbers by Samantha Fletcher and Holly Anthony
 
6.2 Climate Change in Alaska by Basil Conway IV
 
6.3 Culturally Relevant Income Inequality by Andrew Reardon
 
6.4 Intersectionality and The Wage Gap by Stacy Jones, Carlos Gomez, HIlary Tanck, and Eric Siy
 
6.5 Literacy: What matters and why? By Frances Harper and Stephanie Orr
 
6.6 What's a Fair Living Wage? By Frances Harper
 
6.7 What's the Cost of Glbalization? By Allyson Hallman-Thrasher and Rachel Eriksen Brown
 
Chapter 7 Statistics and Probability
 
7.1 A False Positive by Bryan Meyer
 
7.2 Are you a Citizen? 2020 Census by Travis Weiland and Lisa Poling
 
7.3 "BBQ, Becky," Policing, and racial Justice by Mary Raygoza
 
7.4 Do Postal Codes Predict Test Scores? by Allyson Lam
 
7.5 Humanizing the Immigration Debate by Aysenur Ozturk and Steve Lewis
 
7.6 Prison Population by Cristina Tyris
 
7.7 Sampling Disaster by Ginny Powell and America Powell
 
Chapter 8 Geometry
 
8.1 Bringing Healthy Food Choices to Desert by Shakiyya Bland
 
8.2 Gerrymandering by Sven A. Carlsson
 
8.3 Making Mathematical Sense of Food Justice by Jessica Davidson, Dr. Steven Greenstein, Debasmita Bas, and Julia Davidson
 
8.4 Paralympics by Eric Siy, Stacy R. Jones, Carlos, Nicholas Gomez, and HIlary Tanck
 
Part III
 
Chatper 9 Voices from the Field
 
Success Implementing SJMLs
 
Planning for and Responding to Challenges
 
Additional Advice to Colleagues Implementing SJMLs
 
Conclusion
 
Closing Thoughts from Our Contributors
 
Chapter 10 Creating Social Justice Mathematics Lessons for your Own Classroom
 
Setting a Framework for an Effective SJML
 
Getting Started
 
Final Words
 
Appendix A Recommended readings & resources
 
Appendix B Resources names in lessons
 
Appendix C Mathematical Essential Concepts
 
Appendix D Social Justice Standards & Topics
 
Appendix E Lessons by Math Content, Social Justice Outcomes, and Social Justice Topics
 
Appendix F SJML Planner

I did not receive the digital copy yet

Lena Lindenskov
lenali@edu.au.dk

Professor Lena Lindenskov
Danish School of Education, Aarhus University
January 8, 2021

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