New Directions for Equity in Mathematics Education

The issue of how to provide equitable schooling for ethnic and linguistic minorities has come to the forefront of education. Walter Secada has brought together top researchers to examine equity from the standpoint of mathematics education - an excellent forum for the topic, since the results are quantifiable and the disparity in performance is stark. New Directions for Equity in Mathematics Education first addresses broad cultural issues, such as how social class and our notion of merit enter into education. The second section of the book analyses gender issues in maths learning, and the third and final section looks at language and mathematics. A number of themes cut across these three groupings. For example, there is a critique of the reform movement across several chapters; many of the chapters look closely at teachers and the dynamics of the classroom. And chapters in different sections address issues of teacher empowerment and the re-skilling of teachers. Michael Apple, author of Education and Power, provides a provocative concluding chapter to the book.