Researching Mathematics Education in Multilingual Contexts: Theory, Methodology and the Teaching of Mathematics. Research Forum

N

30

Teaching Methods; Mathematics Instruction; Mathematics Education; Anthropology; Multilingualism; Research Methodology; Cognitive Processes

Conducting research in multilingual contexts leads to a number of theoretical and methodological challenges. Classical research methods may be hard to apply, leading to the development of original approaches to research. In particular, issues arise concerning validity, interpretation and the relationship between language, mathematics and mental processes. To tackle these issues, researchers in this field have drawn widely on theories from a range of disciplines, including psychology, linguistics, anthropology and sociology, as well as education. A further challenge for researchers is to draw on their work to inform the practice of teaching mathematics. The main aim in this Research Forum is to explore the impact of multilingualism on three inter-related issues mentioned above: theory, methodology and teaching mathematics in multilingual contexts. The following papers are included in this forum: (1) Working with Theories from Outside Mathematics Education (Marie Hofmannova, Jarmila Novotna, and Judit Moschkovich); (2) Multilingual Contexts for Teaching Mathematics (Philip C. Clarkson); (3) Teaching Mathematics in Multilingual Classrooms (Anjum Halai); (4) Questions of Visibility (Richard Barwell); (5) Mathematics Discourse as Performance: Perspectives from Linguistic Anthropology (Susan Staats). (Individual papers contain references.) [For complete proceedings, see ED489178.]

ERIC

59

2005

ED489197