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Our aim is to shed light on the impact that Eurocentric ideas and practices of dominant social groups have on mathematics education research. We suggest that the unintentional advancement of scholarly work that centers colonization and whiteness requires intentional intervention to disrupt. We identify rationales that mathematics education scholars give for not attending to equity in their work and provide actionable steps that can be taken to promote the practice of explicitly attending to issues of equity and justice in mathematics education research. We conclude with a metaphor and an invitation for our international colleagues to join us in decolonizing mathematics education research.
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Equity, Access, and Justice in Mathematics Education Research: A Personal-professional Journey of Perspective
I argue that we are morally obliged to consider the significant privilege of our lives and the whiteness of mathematics education institutions. Further, to determine implications for our work will require: (i) questioning things we’ve long taken for granted; (ii) developing means for stepping outside our training and standards; and (iii) learning to work together and in communities of those who are not like us but with whom we find alignment. Failing to take up this imperative confirms that we are the problem and existing injustice is our choice, not a reality imposed on us. I mean to argue this with both fervour and humility, using my own personal and professional journey to raise possibilities for us to consider, as a community, in charting the future of mathematics education research.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1760788
- PAR ID:
- 10335375
- Editor(s):
- Kingston, M.; Grimes, P.
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the Eighth Conference on Research in Mathematics Education in Ireland (MEI 8)
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 7-25
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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