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Ethnomathematics as a Fundamental Teaching Approach

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Mathematics Teaching and Professional Learning in sub-Sahara Africa

Part of the book series: Research in Mathematics Education ((RME))

Abstract

Teaching and learning constitute a socially guided event positioning a teacher and students as premier educational participants. Within this conceptualization, an effective teaching of classroom mathematics could be perceived as an instructional interplay between participants’ social placings and cultural consciousness. This interplay should recognize an educational value of a local dialogue and language to negotiate a shared meaning of certain symbolic representations that are mathematically implicated. This recalls the notion of ethnomathematics, which is the study of mathematics that illuminates the value of learning mathematics within one’s culture, the culture in which a teacher and students could be located. This chapter reflects largely on the genesis of ethnomathematics and its close association with mathematics. In the process we unpack the value of a mathematics instruction that is grounded on a proper conceptualization of ethnomathematics in African classrooms. Teaching and learning examples are then provided to model the relevance and applicability of ethnomathematics as an instructional lens to generate productive teaching approaches in mathematics classrooms. We argue that ethnomathematics should be conceptualized and recognized in mathematics classrooms as a teaching approach that zooms into students’ background and that students’ immediate environments are integrated with the euro-centric mathematics in a practical and responsive way to the curriculum.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mathematics Education, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

    France Machaba & Joseph Dhlamini

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  1. France Machaba
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  2. Joseph Dhlamini
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Correspondence to France Machaba .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Mathematics Education, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

    Kakoma Luneta

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Machaba, F., Dhlamini, J. (2021). Ethnomathematics as a Fundamental Teaching Approach. In: Luneta, K. (eds) Mathematics Teaching and Professional Learning in sub-Sahara Africa. Research in Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-82723-6_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-82723-6_5

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