Back to NCTM San Diego: Presentation Summary
Teachers should be sensitive to the fact that some of the NCTM Standards recommendations may conflict with the backgrounds and cultural norms of some of their students. This does not mean that the teacher should not assist the students in developing these abilities but rather should recognize that cultural background may play a role in the student 's development of these abilities.A. Explaining/Justifying, Questioning/challenging/ sharing intellectual authority may prove problematic and at odds with cultures: Students from Haitian & Hispanic cultures may be accustomed to school situations in their home countries in which instruction emphasized rote learning and an expectation that students were quiet obediently following the instructions and explanations. Critical independent thinking discouraged. Teachers faced with task of implementing strategies that encourage independent thinking and expression and still take into account cultural norms that encourage passive, compliant behaviors.
B. Cooperative learning groups - advantages and disadvantages to mixing ethnic groups; possible comfort in working within own ethnic group for cultural or language reasons; same gender groups are often more comfortable for middle school students; same gender at high school level may be better way of dealing with girl/boy relationships and girls inclination to defer to boys in mathematics.
C. context of mathematical task - relevance to whom? real-world for whom? using a variety of contexts might, in the long run, offer relevance to everyone. Abstract contexts have the advantage of placing all students in same space without risk of being biased against any one group.
D. Oral/written communication - some cultures have oral traditions, some emphasize silence; American culture demands both. Need to be aware of strengths and weaknesses of students and the traditions of their cultures.
Grover/Seeley NCTM 1996
[Privacy Policy] [Terms of Use]
Home || The Math Library || Quick Reference || Search || Help
The Math Forum is a research and educational enterprise of the Drexel School of Education.