EDUC4105

Mathematish, the use and understanding of mathematical symbols, involves the rules of using such symbols (or the grammar of mathematish as the authors put it) and how it conveys ideas by the way it is used. They point out that our own proficiency in mathematish may make us unaware of our lack of attention to the grammar needed by students who see it as a foreign language. The authors argue that matematical texts are bilingual, that is they have concepts and symbolic language. A lot of mathematish is taken for granted by teachers who are not explicit about the rules or origin of the features of the language, resulting in the knowledge becoming ‘tacit’ by nature, that is, not expressed or reflected on. Many students view of maths as a fragmented group of topics is due to a lack of understanding of the general language. If they knew the grammar, as in any language, they could see that the rules they learn are applicable across all topics. This requires a dialogue, as the authors state, playing the language game, allowing students to learn the rules through social interaction. I thought it interesting that as teachers of maths our tacit knowledge places us apart from most of our students and many of their problems don’t come into our thinking. This is something to be conscious of at all times. It was also interesting to consider the way textbooks amalgamate mathematical representations as if they were the actual objects and our expectation that students should believe such a ‘lie’. If, from an early age , we can teach students that mathematish is seperate from specific applications of it, that is they can see it as a general tool, then they may learn an important insight into the general nature of mathematics.

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