Ethnomathematics Term Paper

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Ethnomathematics views mathematics as a way of managing reality "specifically by ciphering, counting, measuring, classifying, ordering, inferring and modeling patterns arising in the environment," and the learner's environment and culture must be integrated into the lesson plan to make learning math meaningful (Patterson, 2005). "The suffix 'tics' means art or technique" specifically referring to the practical, lived application of mathematics (Patterson, 2005).

Ethnomathematics has the power to make mathematics accessible to groups that may have felt excluded from mathematical education in the past. For example, in one ethnomathematics unit called "One Grain of Rice," a girl called Rami must budget her rice consumption, illustrating the necessity of mathematics in the daily life of the poor as well as the wealthy. Including ethnically appropriate names and situations in word problems is not just politically correct. It provides 'role models' for children -- if the child in the word problem needs math, the child rationalizes, then so must I.

Finally, ethnomathematics may be an important act of historical restoration of the role of non-Western societies in the history of mathematics, including the Egyptians and the Persians.

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Many anthropologists believe these societies may have influenced Greek advances in geometry and architecture (Fugit & Smith, 1995). Using examples from indigenous societies shows that these societies were not 'primitive' at all.

Ethnomathematics is not a dilution of the regular mathematics curriculum. Quite often, it is using culturally appropriate examples to illustrate commonly taught math concepts, like geometry, fractals, and Cartesian coordinates (Eglash, 2003). At its best, it is an enrichment and expansion of current approaches to teaching math and restores the mathematical contributions of other societies to their rightful place in history.

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