RAPID: Mathematics Within the Tapestry of Civic Engagement Discourse

University Of Texas At Austin, Austin TX

Investigators

Abstract

Quantitative measures and their interpretations play a significant role in school administrators’ and community members’ argumentation during civic discourses. In the public sphere, quantitative measures have long been used to signal logic and objectivity to mathematical models and characterizations of phenomena, which disproportionately affect Communities of Color. The effects have had historical and contemporary implications with respect to school change, including closures, mergers, and funding allocations. This study provides an opportunity to understand how mathematical ideas and discourses are weaved into civic engagements of communities. A richer understanding of mathematics within the tapestry of civic discourses is needed. Employing an ethnographic research design, the overarching research question is: What mathematical ideas are used by school district personnel and community members during discussions of school district change? This research will focus on the following three specific objectives: 1) Analyze and compare mathematical discourses by community members, district personnel, and policy makers; 2) Develop a data-driven conceptual framework for understanding (a) the mathematics used during civic engagement and (b) the perpetuation of mathematics as neutral, ahistorical, objective; and 3) Design video cases emphasizing the use of racial and mathematical discourses for developing teachers’, students’, and leaders’ conocimiento, knowledge and consciousness, with respect to civil engagement. This project is funded through the Racial Equity in STEM Education program (EDU Racial Equity). The program supports research and practice projects that investigate how considerations of racial equity factor into the improvement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce. Awarded projects seek to center the voices, knowledge, and experiences of the individuals, communities, and institutions most impacted by systemic inequities within the STEM enterprise. This program aligns with NSF’s core value of supporting outstanding researchers and innovative thinkers from across the Nation's diversity of demographic groups, regions, and types of organizations. Programs across EDU contribute funds to the Racial Equity program in recognition of the alignment of its projects with the collective research and development thrusts of the four divisions of the directorate. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.