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Case: Math and Social Justice! No No! Recently, I read a report in a national magazine on income levels of different groups of people in the US. The report especially featured income differences between males, females and different ethnic groups. Some of the statistics were very disturbing. For example, women holding the same job as men with same number of years in the job made considerably less money in most of the states. Differences between ethnic groups were even more disturbing. I decided to use these data in my math class with my 5th graders in a lesson on graphing. The purpose was for the students to be able to interpret graphs and create graphs using the information provided. Students enjoyed the lesson and learned some social justice lessons. Apparently a lot of my students talked to their parents about what they had learned in class when they went home. I received notes from about 10 parents the next day simply indicating that what I taught in my math class would lead to hatred among my students and that I should not be wasting their children's valuable time. Rather, they suggested, I should teach math with no controversial materials. I completely disagree with them and I plan to use similar materials in my other courses as well. However, my principals asked me to send an explanation to those parents. I know my explanation will not stop the complaints. How should I go about this potentially long battle? Or should I take the short cut simply remove such content from my lessons? Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) The reason we have the problems we do in this country is because of ignorance and lack of education. I think you should fight this battle, even if you have to hold a parent meeting one night to explain your line of reasoning. Then, maybe you could create a parent permission form and hold the parents responsible for not allowing their kids to be educated in a multicultural way. It would cause you more work, but you could provide these students with alternative exercises and keep the parents happy. Honestly, when parents complain, I feel like you have to listen, but you have to understand that they will have to face the consequences of their child being uneducated about issues that don't need to be swept under the rug. |
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