Quantitative Literacy
The book Mathematics and Democracy: The Case for Quantitative Literacy prepared by The National Council on Education and the Disciplines (NCAD) and edited by Lynn Arthur Steen discusses quantitative literacy and the importance to our schools and society. It is described as “confidence with mathematics; a cultural appreciation of mathematics; the ability to interpret data, to think logically, to make decisions thoughtfully, to make use of mathematics in context; and more†(Schoenfeld, 2001, p. 51). This is quite a statement for a mathematics teacher and quite a responsibility. We have a responsibility to do much more than teach some list of objectives.
Communication skills are as important as math skills in math courses. The ability to think, reason and communicate within such a diverse society and develop the subtle insights to make rational decisions within the context of your obligations as a citizen requires quantitative and communicative skills. You need to stop and think about this for a minute; this means communicating mathematics is just as important as the math itself. You don’t really have the skills if you can’t communicate them and also can’t use them in context. This is important for every teacher and every mathematics department or division. Should math across the curriculum be taught? I think so. I think all teachers should be responsible for improving writing within each discipline, and they should also be responsible for quantitative literacy within the discipline.
Can a home economics teacher teach quantitative skills? Yes. Measurements are very important in home economics: measuring cooking requirement, measuring for home decoration, developing a household budget, planning for your retirement. Can a history or social studies teacher teach these skills? Again, yes. History looks at budgets, costs of wars, distance, on and on you could go. How about a Literature teacher? Yes, I would guess they would look at dates, money, values, and percents. Again I could see many, many quantitative applications for quantitative literacy in the classrooms. Cab you think of some in your content area?
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Schoenfeld, A. Reflections on an impoverished education. In Steen, L. (ed.) Mathematics and democracy: The case for quantitative Literacy. (p.49-54). Princeton, NJ: Woodrow Wilson Fellowship Foundation.
