Mathematics teachers as agents of change: Exploring teacher identity and social justice through a community of practice.

摘要

Critical educators and many education scholars argue that mathematics (particularly algebra) stands as a gatekeeper to future success especially for low-income students of color (Apple, 1992; Burton, 2003; Martin, 2000, 2003; Moses & Cobb, 2001). The emerging field of teaching mathematics for social justice, rooted in Freire's (1970) notion of education as a political and potentially liberating act, aims to address these inequities (Brantlinger, 2007; Frankenstein, 2005; Gau-Bartell, 2005; Gutierrez, 2007; Gutstein, 2006; Gutstein and Peterson, 2005).;This study draws upon the literature on social justice in mathematics education as well as that in the preparation of both pre-service and in-service teachers, as it explores the developing identities of seven New York City public high school mathematics teachers and myself as mathematics teachers and agents of change. It aims to address the present lack of research on preparing teachers to teach mathematics for social justice (for exceptions see, Gau-Bartell, 2005; Gutstein, 2006). Through a community of practice that met regularly over a period of several months, the teachers and I discussed relevant articles, engaged in activities around mathematics and social justice, and created a high school level mathematics curricular unit around a social justice issue that the teachers saw as relevant to the urban students that they teach.;Findings indicate that while the teachers were interested in the teaching of mathematics for social justice, they initially did not understand the concept. As the teachers' understandings grew, they began to see teaching as a political act and broadened their conceptions of what it means to teach mathematics and of their roles as teachers of mathematics and agents of social change. Though they expressed both support for and concern about teaching in this manner, the teachers began to envision their classrooms as places where social injustices could be examined through mathematics. They responded positively to the professional development noting their interest the topic, the usefulness of the work and the supportive environment of the community of practice, while at the same time expressing a need for further support so as to fully implement what they had learned into their teaching.