Introduction

Abstract

Today it is generally acknowledged that mathematics education has a strong social and political dimension. It is not only the reality of school and classroom practice which have to respect political goals and cope with different social settings, but mathematics education research and development also are influenced by social aspects and political decisions. However, in 1988, it was a novel idea that an ICME congress should devote a whole day to a special program addressing social and political issues in the context of mathematics education. The large number of contributors for this day — 90 from over 40 countries spread all over the world — indicated an increasing awareness of the relations between education in general as a universal human right and mathematics education in particular. The title of the Fifth Day Special Program at ICME VI, “Mathematics, Education, and Society”, represented an intent to investigate the interrelationship between mathematics education, educational policies and social and cultural conditions in a broad sense. It was accepted for the first time as a legitimate challenge, a matter of worldwide consciousness and recognition. One important focus was on analysing conditions and causes of the restricted teaching and learning opportunities for pupils of certain groups defined by gender, class, and ethnical minority in industrialised countries, as well as for the majority of the young people growing up in the non-industrialized “Third World”. The community of mathematics educators agreed to search for the means to overcome Eurocentrism and cultural oppression in mathematics teaching and learning, and in the design of curricula, learning materials and learning environments, and to adopt critical and multicultural perspectives which allow meaningful mathematics learning to be related to social experiences and social needs.