Unappealing<\/p>\n
Inaccessible<\/p>\n
Invisible<\/p>\n
Beautiful<\/p>\n
Ubiquitous<\/p>\n
Rule-based<\/p>\n
Numbers<\/td>\n
Male<\/p>\n
White<\/p>\n
Heterosexual<\/p>\n
Middle-class<\/p>\n
Old<\/p>\n
Other \/ eccentric<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
There are whole host of contradictions within these representations \u2013 maths is essential yet invisible, ubiquitous but inaccessible, rule-based but eccentric. The stereotypical mathematician is also a contradiction; a white, heterosexual, middle-aged, middle-class man is often the \u2018default person\u2019 – so far so good for that group of people – but when it comes to a mathematician, he has to have something \u2018other\u2019 about him as well, like messy hair, messy suit, silly heavy glasses or a reclusive personality. It goes without saying that most mathematicians are not represented by the stereotype.<\/p>\n
![\"Image](\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/1\/11\/NASA_human_computers_-_Katherine_Coleman_Goble_Johnson.jpg\")
Katherine Johnson, NASA<\/p><\/div>\n
We are presented with a dilemma; on one hand, mathematics is a key to success and on the other, it is accessible and enjoyable for only a small section of society.\u00a0 When adolescents are deciding whether to continue studying maths to A Level or at University, they need to consider not only what will help them \u2018get ahead\u2019 and what they will enjoy, but also whether they want to brand themselves as a \u2018scruffy loner\u2019 \u2013 in the case of white middle-class males \u2013 or as \u2018the odd one out\u2019 \u2013 in the case of everyone else. Dominic Cummings\u2019 recent call out <\/a>for \u2018data scientists, project managers, policy experts, assorted weirdos\u2026\u2019 to apply for top jobs at No.10 strengthens the message that those who are destined for success have something unusual about them.<\/p>\n Another contradiction stems from the many different meanings of the word \u2018maths\u2019. What is being referred to in the message \u2018you need maths to get a good job\u2019 is most commonly school maths and, specifically, the actual qualification. Yet it is mathematician\u2019s mathematics \u2013 maths play, exploration and investigation \u2013 we mean when we say \u2018maths is beautiful and everywhere\u2019. These two areas may overlap, but the curriculum and emphasis on exam results mean that maths qualifications and mathematician\u2019s mathematics are often two very extreme ends of the spectrum.<\/p>\n Visitors using Zome at the Olafur Eliasson Exhibition, Tate Modern, London<\/p><\/div>\n Finally, there is the dilemma of ubiquitous maths. The theme for this year\u2019s International Day of Mathematics<\/a> is Maths is Everywhere<\/em>. It is often said that maths can \u2018explain the world around us\u2019. As someone who has always enjoyed maths, I agree with this \u2013 I love finding out new patterns and puzzles in all aspects of life. But many people suffer from maths anxiety and, in saying \u2018maths is everywhere\u2019, are we also saying some people do not get to \u201cunderstand\u201d the world? If we are espousing the message that maths is everywhere, we should probably also make sure that it is there for<\/em> everyone \u2013 practically and aesthetically \u2013 not just an elite few.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Bibliography<\/strong><\/p>\n Barwell, R. and Abtahi, Y. (2015) Morality and news media representations of mathematics education, Proceedings of the eighth international mathematics education and society conference:<\/em> 298-311<\/p>\n Civil, M. (2002) Everyday mathematics, mathematicians’ mathematics, and school mathematics: Can we bring them together?, In M. Brenner and J. Moschkovich (Eds.), Everyday and academic mathematics in the classroom. Journal of Research in Mathematics Education Monograph <\/em>11, 40-62<\/p>\n Criado Perez, C. (2019) Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men,<\/em> London: Chatto and Windus<\/p>\n Damarin, S. (2000) The mathematically able as a marked category, Gender and education<\/em>, 12(1), 69-85<\/p>\n Lewis, G. and Forsythe, S. (2018) Factors for and against choosing to study mathematics post-16, Mathematics Teaching<\/em>, 262, 10-13<\/p>\n McLeod, D. B. (1992) Research on affect in mathematics education: A reconceptualization. In A. D. Grouws (Ed.) Handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning<\/em>, 575-596. New York \/ Toronto: Macmillan \/ Maxwell Macmillan Canada<\/p>\n Mendick, H. and Moreau, M.-P. (2012) New media, old images: Constructing online representations of women and men in science, engineering and technology, Gender and Education<\/em>, 25(3), 325-339<\/p>\n Moreau, M.-P., Mendick, H. and Epstein, D. (2010) Constructions of mathematicians in popular culture and learners\u2019 narratives: A study of mathematical and non\u2010mathematical subjectivities, Cambridge Journal of Education<\/em>, 40(1), 25-38<\/p>\n National Numeracy, Manifesto for a numerate UK <\/em>[Online] Available at: http:\/\/www.nationalnumeracy.org.uk\/sites\/default\/files\/media\/manifesto_for_a_numerate_uk.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n Picker, S. and Berry, J. (2000) Investigating pupils\u2019 images of mathematicians, Educational Studies in Mathematics<\/em>, 43(1), 65-94<\/p>\n Smith, A. (2017) Report of Professor Sir Adrian Smith\u2019s review of post-16 mathematics<\/em>, London: Department for Education<\/p>\n Smith, C. (2019) Discourses of time and maturity structuring participation in mathematics and further mathematics, British Journal of Sociology of Education<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dr Cathy Smith, who leads the maths education team here at the OU, has recently had a paper published in the British Journal of Sociology of Education \u2013 congratulations Cathy! In a nutshell (if it\u2019s possible!), the paper concerns the … Continue reading ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/MathEd\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Playing-with-maths_visitors-using-Zome-at-the-Olafur-Eliasson-Exhibition-Tate-Modern-London.jpg\")
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