Identity-Making through Cree Mathematizing

Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE). 260 Dalhousie Street Suite 204, Ottawa, ON K1N 7E4, Canada. Tel: 613-241-0018; Fax: 613-241-0019; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: https://cje-rce.ca/

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Mathematics Instruction; Teaching Methods; Urban Schools; Bilingual Education; American Indian Languages; Canada Natives; English; Identification (Psychology); Culturally Relevant Education; Indigenous Knowledge; Grade 6; Language Usage; Cultural Influences

1918-5979

We describe mathematics classroom teaching practice in an urban Canadian prairie Cree-bilingual school using the term "Cree mathematizing," which, to us, means (re)considering Euro-Western school mathematics from the perspectives of the Cree people engaging with the content. "Cree mathematizing" takes the form of classroom lessons in which mathematical terms are translated between English and Cree, shared through stories situated in time, place, and relationships, and contextualized by the experiences of the students and teachers. In terms of the narrative conception of identity-making, "Cree mathematizing" is a process of engaging in school mathematics that necessitates Cree educators and students to understand themselves as producing mathematics through their unique experiences and stories, making "Cree mathematizing" a partial representation of identity. We argue that "Cree mathematizing" is a subversive practice that challenges the ways Euro-Western school mathematics is taught as a culture-free, apolitical, and decontextualized endeavour that is devoid of human narratives of experience.

As Provided

2019

EJ1231582