Opening the Algebra Gate

Removing Obstacles to Success in College Preparatory Mathematics Courses

Bibliographic Data

ID4901985
AuthorsMieko Kamii (corresponding author)
Year1990
Volume59
Issue3
Pages392
Publication date1990-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Negro Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-2984 • E-ISSN: 2167-6437
PublisherJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/2295572
OpenAlexW2003156603
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited7

As the reports of the National Research Council (1989) and the American Council on Education (1988) attest, America is experiencing growing sense of crisis about the future of its mathematics and science education and about the education of future majority populations, most notably in its urban schools. The work of The Algebra Project lies at the intersection of these major national concerns. In their account of The Algebra Project's mission and history, Silva and Moses (1990) argue that mathematical literacy is fast becoming prerequisite not only for participation in global economy driven by technological change, but for citizen participation itself. They warn that communities whose members are lacking in mathematical literacy risk becoming a permanent underclass who, generation after generation, live on the margins of the nation's economic and political institutions. Such an outcome should be as intolerable for the nation as whole as for its African American, Hispanic American, and Native American communities. Traditionally, national concern about the severe underrepresentation of minorities and women in mathematically based careers has focused on issues of equity, but the current sense of urgency stems from projections of twenty-first century demographic and economic realities. Simply stated, the warning is that if America is to maintain standards of excellence and leadership in the twenty-first century, then it must find ways to attract and educate underrepresented peoples in the fields of mathematics, science, and engineering. The American future cannot rest on White males alone, for, by the year 2000, only 15 percent of new workers will be White males; the remaining 85 percent will be women, minorities, and immigrants. As Steen (1990) argues, strategies for increasing participation of underrepresented groups must encourage both equity and excellence

Algebra over a field · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Pure mathematics · Education Systems and Policy · Mathematics · Parental Involvement in Education · Psychology · School Choice and Performance