MATHEMATICS TEACHING ACROSS MULTICULTURAL CONTEXT

By : Kholida Agustin (09301241011)

Department of Mathematics Education, Faculty of Mathematics and Science,

Yogyakarta State University

A.    Introduction 

A

Mathematics still becomes scary subject for student. Improper teaching method that used by the teacher make student confuse and not have any desire to learn mathematics further. The students are prosecuted to always develop their knowledge and their ability in mathematics. On the other hand, the teacher also prosecuted to improve their teaching skill. There is opinion, “if we want to improve the student’s ability, we must improve the teacher skill first”. This opinion should be advice for the teacher to become better teacher in the future.

Teaching mathematics in school should be has suit approaches to make the student improve correctly, suit with world development. The development of technology makes this world feel tighter. The student can learn by their selves by other friend or other teacher in illusion world. The teacher must ready with this changes, with other approach in teaching mathematics so the student ready with true world that must to stand before.

B.      Mathematics Teaching Across Multicultural Context

Ono Y said that Mathematical thinking (Marsigit), is the basis for various types of  thinking, and by learning mathematics students can learn the logical and rational mode of thinking. Also mathematics has a very wide range of applications including physics, statistics and economics. And in these various different fields mathematical thinking is employed. Also if we look at the curriculums in various countries, in any country we see, mathematics is taught from very young age. That is because all countries recognize the importance of mathematics.

A lot of point of view has described from the educationist based from their culture. According to Marsigit, for Indonesian context, the aim of mathematics education from now on is still urgently to promote mathematical thinking and to take it into actions. In Japan, mathematical thinking is based on mathematical attitude, is carried out with mathematical representation and is necessary for understanding. The Japanese Ministry of Education recommended that teachers have decision making authority for teaching a lesson based on the observation conditions developed from these four categories. In lesson planning during the first part of Lesson Study, teachers analyze subject matter and anticipate students’ responses.

There are still a lot of diverse context of mathematics across multicultural that reflect characteristic of each country. Because of this diverse, arise diverse teaching approach also. Teaching mathematics should be multicultural approach also to suit with any different custom in each country.

C.      Multicultural Education and Implication for Teaching Mathematics

The student may see mathematics as a subject that has very little meaning or value for their current or future lives. As a mathematics educator, the teacher must actively look for ways of linking mathematics and our multicultural society. The opinions of Banks that bring up by Marylin Strutchens (1995) that describe five dimensions about multicultural education provide a framework for empowering all of our student’s trough multicultural mathematics.

1.      Content integration

The dimension of multicultural mathematics identifies diverse cultural contrive contribution to mathematics. Discussing the contributions of mathematicians from different ethnics groups, nationalities, and genders helps student from diverse cultures overcome some of their fears and negative attitude towards mathematics. Histories of mathematical concepts or skills also conclude in the category of content integration  

2.      Knowledge construction

This component refers how students construct knowledge for themselves. Teacher can help students to understand that even though that there are certain element of mathematics that universal, such as counting, locating, measuring and designing, there are differences in the ways diverse cultural groups view some of the major aspect of mathematics.

For example, Indians and Chinese believe that a result in mathematics can be validated by any method, including visual demonstration, whereas Europeans expect a conjecture to be proven step by step, starting with self-evident axiom.

3.      Prejudice reduction

Positive attitudes toward different cultural groups can be encouraged by using mathematics to study social or cultural issues

4.      Equitable pedagogy

This dimension is concerned mainly with interactions between teachers and students and requires a mutual respect for culture, not just in terms of historical contributions and artifacts, but in every aspect of instruction. For example, to develop understanding of signed numbers, students begin with the physical activity of riding a subway train. As the students and their teacher travel on the subway, they notice where the train stops. Their entry point is considered the origin; stops before the origin are denoted with negative numbers, and stops after, with positive numbers.

5.      Empowering school culture and social culture

Finally, in order to make higher level mathematics accessible to all students, we must examine the dimension of multicultural education that deals with the school culture and social structure. Some of the variables considered here are grouping practices, social climate, assessment practices, participation in extracurricular activities, and staff expectations and responses to diversity. One of the most critical aspects of mathematics is that it is viewed as a filter that limits students' career aspirations.

D.     Why is multicultural approach important in teaching mathematics?

Like what said before, multicultural approach important in teaching mathematics because there are a lot of point of view of learning math (come from each country that have different custom and values)and also a lot of world problem that have to stand before by the student.

The important of multicultural approach has bring up by Frederick L. Uy:

·         Humanizes mathematics lessons and topics

Many daily need of human life fulfill with mathematics. For example an architect that made arts and designs with symmetrical shape, transformation and proportion. An architect also has to know about geometry and measurement to draw what will design. Another example is researcher that never released from technologies. Base of technologies is math, so when someone wants to make or improve new technologies they must understand about math. Those daily need is not only for human in Indonesia but also all of the people in the world. So the student must know what the people in the world need and must learn mathematics approach multicultural approach to solve it.

·         Includes all students and boosts the confidence levels of students

All of the people in the world have doing mathematics. It means that mathematics has universal values. What the student learns is also what foreign student learns.

·         Gives a holistic learning and connects to other disciplines (interdisciplinary approach), and determines the usage of mathematics in society and in other groups

·         Corrects inaccuracies within mathematics, increases the universality of mathematics, and recognizes and acknowledges the existence of “other” mathematics

·         Gives an education in awareness of students’ background

The student learns from the teacher. But it’s not false if the student learn from the other friend or the other source. It’s also not a mistake if the teacher learns from the student.

·         Promotes critical thinking

The student learn mathematics across multicultural context, it means that student must think about mathematics more deeply from many different face/side. It’s not only how to solve it, but also how to apply it.

·         Consistent with constructivism

In this approach, student use new issues that they have got to be related with context that have got before like constructivism.

E.      Who are needed in using a multicultural approach in teaching mathematics?

·         Teacher

The main key in the multicultural teaching of mathematics are the teachers. The teacher have major impact about what student know because the teacher is the person who make and responsible teaching learning process in the class.

·         Curriculum Developer

Curriculum Developer is the link relating the teacher and the government. What government or country hopes is what the teacher strives.

·         Principal and School Administrator

Principal is the leader of the school, so they have authority in make any insight to develop the quality of the teacher and the student. School administrator has responsibility to communicate with the parents so the parents are not misinformed and follow to support the effort of the school.  

·         Parent

The role of the parents are not few. They can suggest any idea based on their background. It makes mathematics teaching get more suggestion.

F.       Conclusion

The world’s changing, student have many chance to learn by their selves. Teacher has a role as a facilitator, but the role as facilitator is not easy. The teacher must understand what student need and give it not instantly, but they have to stimulate the student to discover it.

Like technology that improves and used by the people in the world across multicultural ethnic, custom and values, learning math also has improvement. The teacher should be known what student need in the next future, how they stand before the globalization. Teaching mathematics use multicultural approaches can be alternative to answer different context of mathematical thinking.

G.     Sources

Uy, Frederick L. Teaching Mathematics Concepts Using a Multicultural Approach. Diakses di http://www.ccd.rpi.edu/eglash/nasgem/ncsm04/Uy,%20Fred%20Teaching%20Concepts.pdf pada 1 Desember 2011

Strutchens, Marilyn. 1995. Multicultural Mathematics: A More Inclusive Mathematics. ERIC Digest. Diakses di http://www.ericdigests.org/1996-1/more.htm pada 1 Desember 2011

Marsigit. Mathematical Thinking Across Multilateral Culture. Diakses di www.uny.ac.id pada 1 Desember 2011