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Oregon Plan to Undo "Racism in Mathematics".

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Fnord
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16 Feb 2021, 11:20 am

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The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) recently encouraged teachers to register for training that encourages "ethnomathematics" and argues, among other things, that White supremacy manifests itself in the focus on finding the right answer.

Part of the toolkit includes a list of ways "white supremacy culture" allegedly "infiltrates math classrooms."  Those include "the focus is on getting the 'right' answer," students being "required to 'show their work,'" and other alleged manifestations.

Instead of focusing on one right answer, the toolkit encourages teachers to "come up with at least two answers that might solve this problem."

"The concept of mathematics being purely objective is unequivocally false, and teaching it is even much less so," the document for the "Equitable Math" toolkit reads.  "Upholding the idea that there are always right and wrong answers perpetuate objectivity as well as fear of open conflict."
Source:  This Fox News Article 

:roll: Oh, kaaaaayyyy ...

Requiring students to get the right answers and show how they got those answers has nothing to do with anyone's race, and everything to do with learning mathematics.  In one section of the "Dismantling Racism" workbook, the argument is made that "only white people can be racist in our society, because only white people as a group have that power."

This reminds me of the "Science Must Fall" movement (c.2016) in South Africa that demanded educators deconstruct science and reconstruct it to include African "magic" and traditional folk beliefs.  That movement lasted for about 3 months before disappearing altogether.


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magz
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16 Feb 2021, 11:24 am

I wonder how popular the concept that "math is racist" really is. After all, Fox News, being AFAIK right-aligned, may like to highlight the most stupid ideas from the left.


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Fnord
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16 Feb 2021, 11:30 am

magz wrote:
I wonder how popular the concept that "math is racist" really is. After all, Fox News, being AFAIK right-aligned, may like to highlight the most stupid ideas from the left.
Yes, it is a Fox News article, and therefore of dubious factual content; but the proposed course material (I have read it) pushes the idea that mathematics, as it is currently taught, is just another tool of "white dominance" and "minority oppression".  The leaders of the "Science Must Fall" movement said the same things about "western" science, as well.

Here is an excerpt from page 1 of "A Pathway to Equitable Math Instruction":
Quote:
How To Use This Tool

While primarily for math educators, this text advocates for a collective approach to dismantling white supremacy. This schoolwide approach ensures that antiracist work is not left alone to one individual (i.e., math teacher or the director of equity), but to enlist the support and voice of all stakeholders in the school ecosystem.

• Teachers should use this workbook to self-reflect on individual practices in the classroom and identify next steps in their antiracist journey as a math educator.

• Leaders and coaches should use the framework during observations and walkthroughs, annotating the behaviors and providing targeted feedback.

• Administrators should examine programs and policies and how white supremacy impacts student outcomes (e.g., tracking, course selection, intervention rosters). In addition, they can hold teachers accountable for completing the activities in this workbook.


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Last edited by Fnord on 16 Feb 2021, 11:36 am, edited 1 time in total.

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16 Feb 2021, 11:32 am

2 + 2 = 4 or (11)3

Somehow, I don't think I want someone trained that way to engineer anything important, or do my accounting, or working a cash register....


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16 Feb 2021, 11:32 am

I wonder how popular this theory of two or more right answers will be in terms of accounting firms and other businesses that put heavy emphasis on use of math? I suspect that this theory will cause a lot more problems in the business world than the size of the problem it is aimed to fix.



magz
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16 Feb 2021, 11:36 am

Try to tell the Japanese that Math and Science are "Western".
The very concept is stupid. The beauty of science is, it doesn't matter who you are, it matters what you contribute.


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16 Feb 2021, 11:42 am

Some more of the things that are considered "Racist" by the writers of the curriculum:

• Good math teaching is considered an antidote for mathematical inequity.
• Grading practices are focused on lack of knowledge.
• Independent practice is valued over teamwork or collaboration.
• Math is taught in a linear fashion and skills are taught sequentially.
• Procedural fluency is preferred over conceptual knowledge.
• State standards guide learning in the classroom.
• Students are required to show their work.
• Teachers are teachers and students are learners.
• The focus is on getting the right answer.

How can any of this be considered "Racist"?

Really ... I am asking!


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Last edited by Fnord on 16 Feb 2021, 12:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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16 Feb 2021, 11:45 am

Double Retired wrote:
2 + 2 = 4 or (11)3
Somehow, I don't think I want someone trained that way to engineer anything important, or do my accounting, or working a cash register....
Getting the answers "close enough" is what caused the space shuttles Challenger and Columbia to self-destruct.


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16 Feb 2021, 1:22 pm

Since when was maths racist???


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16 Feb 2021, 1:27 pm

What would motivate someone to play this big of a "Race Card" just to dumb-down mathematics instruction?


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16 Feb 2021, 1:38 pm

NaturalEntity wrote:
Since when was maths racist???

They argue:

1. Capitalism is evil , and racist.

2. Math draws you into capitalism.

For example, *compound interest*, teaches you the evil and racist principals of exploiting others.

Hey, look at all the money I can make off of other people!

Image


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16 Feb 2021, 1:40 pm

TheRobotLives wrote:
NaturalEntity wrote:
Since when was maths racist???

They argue:

1. Capitalism is evil , and racist.

2. Math draws you into capitalism.

For example, *compound interest*, teaches you the evil and racist principals of exploiting others.

Hey, look at all the money I can make off of other people!

Image

OK I'm not a fan of capitalism but capitalism isn't inherently racist. If anything, the system is. Doesn't mean simple maths instruction is racist either.


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16 Feb 2021, 1:43 pm

TheRobotLives wrote:
NaturalEntity wrote:
Since when was maths racist???

They argue:

1. Capitalism is evil , and racist.

2. Math draws you into capitalism...
On page 8 of the "Pathway to Equitable Math Instruction" manual, the authors confirm this in a general way:
Quote:
Recognize the ways that communities of color engage in mathematics and problem solving in their everyday lives.
• Teach that mathematics can help solve problems affecting students’ communities. Model the use of math as a solution to their immediate problems, needs, or desires.
• Identify and challenge the ways that math is used to uphold capitalist, imperialist, and racist views.
• Teach the value of math as both an abstract concept and as a useful everyday tool.
• Expose students to examples of people who have used math as resistance. Provide learning opportunities that use math as resistance.
... and again on page 58...
Quote:
White supremacy culture shows up in math classrooms when "Real-world math" is valued over math in the real world.

Often the emphasis is placed on learning math in the "real world," as if our classrooms are not a part of the real world.  This reinforces notions of either/or thinking because math is only seen as useful when it is in a particular context.  However, this can result in using mathematics to uphold capitalist and imperialist ways of being and understandings of the world.


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magz
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16 Feb 2021, 2:02 pm

Dumbing down Math in public schools means less opportunities to those who can't afford private education, meaning the children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to... stay disadvantaged.


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16 Feb 2021, 2:07 pm

magz wrote:
Dumbing down Math in public schools means less opportunities to those who can't afford private education, meaning the children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to... stay disadvantaged.


I think this has been in debate for a while about dumbing down math. I think it would be more beneficial to offer free tutoring to kids who need it after school.



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16 Feb 2021, 2:39 pm

By dumbing-down a subject (such as maths), the best performers -- those most deserving of higher education -- will be indistinguishable from those who received passing grades for merely showing up.  "There are no incorrect answers" and "Everybody deserves an 'A'" are the wrong messages to give to people who may not learn until it is too late that they have to compete for jobs and promotions in the employment marketplace.

Imagine losing out on promotions to those geeky, gawky kids who spent most of their free time reading their textbooks and doing their homework because they had no social lives; because it is not the schools that determine who gets hired and promoted "in the real world".  Instead, it is those capitalist and imperialist employers (whom the authors hate) who decide who is worthy of hiring and promoting and who is not.

If I had to choose between an aspie who could solve trig problems in her head and a "normie" who could not count past 10 without removing his shoes and socks, I would hire and promote the aspie.


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