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Welcome to the Jungle. An Orientation Guide to the Disorder of Mathematics Education

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The Disorder of Mathematics Education

Abstract

This introductory chapter builds on the assumption that the sociopolitical dimensions of mathematics education have been gradually recognised as an important part of mathematics education research. We problematise the process of institutionalising these dimensions as a firm strand of mathematics education research just as “philosophy of mathematics (education)”, “history of mathematics (education)”, “modelling and applications” or “geometry”. This leads us to identify and conceptualise “disorder” as the foundation of the sociopolitical dimensions and accordingly to propose a shift from focussing diversity towards focussing disorder. Finally, we illustrate how the chapters of this book contribute to such an alternative self-conception of sociopolitical research in mathematics education.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See the Gödel theorem (Gödel 1931) as an example that should be more or less familiar to most mathematics educators.

  2. 2.

    “We shall not forget that ‘symbolische Ordnung’ makes both in French and English semantic reference to the social system of rules [Regeln] and also to a command [Gebot]; hence, ‘l’ ‘ordre symbolique’ and ‘the symbolic order’ are not only denoting an order [Ordnung] but also a command, referring to the command [Anordnung] to transgress that order.” (Pfaller 2011, p. 26, own translation)

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fachbereich Erziehungswissenschaft und Psychologie, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Hauke Straehler-Pohl & Nina Bohlmann

  2. Education and Social Research Institute, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK

    Alexandre Pais

Authors
  1. Hauke Straehler-Pohl
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  2. Alexandre Pais
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  3. Nina Bohlmann
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Correspondence to Hauke Straehler-Pohl .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Hauke Straehler-Pohl

  2. Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Nina Bohlmann

  3. Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom

    Alexandre Pais

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Straehler-Pohl, H., Pais, A., Bohlmann, N. (2017). Welcome to the Jungle. An Orientation Guide to the Disorder of Mathematics Education. In: Straehler-Pohl, H., Bohlmann, N., Pais, A. (eds) The Disorder of Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34006-7_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34006-7_1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-34006-7

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