Kritisk matematikundervisning - for fremtiden

The project elaborates a conception of critical mathematics education based on the idea that mathematics education is both a significant and an undetermined socio-political system. It is significant as it plays an important socio-political function, for instance by influencing other social systems. Mathematics education produces social inclusion or exclusion, and it plays a role in establishing technological super-structures. However, mathematics education is also undetermined, as it is possible, on the one hand, to think of mathematics education as a social activity that incorporates an intrinsic ‘goodness'. It seems obvious that it is important that students come to learn and understand mathematics, which has its long history integrated with a remarkable cultural and scientific development. On the other hand, it is also possible to enumerate a long list of ‘badness' that can be produced by mathematics education. This education could exercises a sexism, an cultural suppression and plays a role as a new form of colonisation. Depending on the particular context, mathematics education can serve wonders as well as horrors. Mathematics education is without a predefined essence.