Week 6 Blog ECS 203

During this week in ECS 203, we read and reviewed content that is based around mathematics as well as concepts from Inuit mathematics. What is the purpose of Math? While watching Gale’s lecture on Curriculum as Numeracy, she brings up the point that we have used and understood math- more specifically subtraction- ever since we were 9 months old. We are all Mathematical beings. Then there was the quote that “maybe math just isn’t for you” that Gale has heard, this is something that I have heard and said about myself my whole life. To see this, and to know that there is a new type of support coming from those teaching Math, gives me hope that there won’t be more students like me who start to sweat when the idea of playing a math game comes into question. Gale also quotes her definition of “Math” : “math is a study of a number of things, and it’s an exploration of a number of things, and its how to represent and talk about a number of things” she includes that math is about quantity- and relates this to more than just numbers. Patterns- its more than just repeating numbers. Relationships and shapes, they all have more importance rather than just from the numerical standpoint. Gale applies math to real life, not just assigning numbers to these concepts, but to realize the relationships these concepts have to everyday situations. Between all of the readings we discover the challenges pointed out with the Eurocentric way of teaching math especially when viewed through the lens of those learning with Inuit worldview teachings. One of the biggest differences was that it was about relationships and the whole body (Spiritual, Emotional, Physical and Intellectual). They also referenced how another way Inuit mathematics challenges Eurocentric math is the use of the calendar. Mentioned in Poirier’s article their calendar is not divided into set days like ours, it is neither lunar or solar; their calendar is based on natural, independently recurring yearly events. Another way that is expressed is that Inuit people have developed a system for expressing numbers orally and through oral traditions. Since their teachings are mainly oral, Eurocentric teaching methods, such as written form are not used. Recently I took a Math 101 class at the University of Regina. My math prof was one of the best, he taught me math in a way that made me understand it and come to like it. He taught my class math in all different bases, one of them was base 20, which is what the Inuit use. This gave me another perspective on Math as a subject.

When it comes to single stories, or the “danger” of single stories, the Ted talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie she talks about how the characters in the books she read were usually white, eating apples, talking about weather that was different than she experienced where she lived, and drinking beverages that she never knew about. Basically, she read about monotone, copy and paste, lacking diverse stories, which means she would write about monotone, copy and paste, lacking diverse stories. The questions I have been asked is: which “single stories” were present in my own schooling? Whose truth mattered? What biases and lenses do you bring to the classroom? How might we unlearn / work against these biases? Similar to Chimamanda, the stories I read always involved white characters who had both a mom and dad that lived in clean big houses with a medium sized dog named Rover. This is only one truth that is being shared, however, I never got to read about everybody else’s truths, all truths matter. The best way for us to unlearn and to work against these biases is to understand why the stories that were read to us growing up (at least in my grade and school) have negative impacts on everyone involved. We need to understand, recognize, and change. In my future classrooms, I will have books that involve all family types, skin types, situation types, sexual orientation types, animals, and more. I want to have books and stories that are inclusive to all. I want every student to have a story they can relate to, whether it’s about skin colour, having two moms, or about the fact that they too have a dog. I want to involve all stories so that it pushes for inclusivity, kindness, acceptance, support, and love. 

Thank you for reading.

Best, Baylee