MATH HATE MAIL
I have precious few celebrity crushes and they tend to be quite the nerds and hardly known. More than a decade ago I came across the work of Dr. Jo Boaler, professor of Math Eduction at Stanford University, when the math teacher for my middle schooler suggested his students take her free course “How to Learn Math - For Students.” We were surprised to find that instead of drills or games meant to improve skills, it was a series of engaging sessions about how we learn and why we fail, and why so many of us lose at loving math. I took her companion course “How to Learn Math - For Teachers” and considered changing careers to teach math as a result. I have followed Boaler’s work since and was excited to learn she was working on the new California math framework.
We need her equity minded approach to math education! The US has a major problem with math education and California is among the lowest performing states. With four kids who have gone through California schools, I have seen first hand the disastrous effects of math instruction gone awry. Jo Boaler is THE PERSON I would choose to look at the problem squarely and recommend solutions. Are you yawning? It’s not the most riveting story to think about re-writing math curriculum for a state. But word got out that she might be supporting Black Lives, gender equity, subverting ableism and suddenly she became a celebrity of the infamous kind on Tucker Carlson’s HATE MAIL list. She has since been baselessly accused, verbally abused, and her life and livelihood threatened on and off line.
It is so disheartening to witness my fellow Americans invest time and energy in hateful rhetoric that undermines equity and justice work. That even math framework revision could be attacked shows how important it is that we remain vigilant in the face of injustice. What to do? Support equity in education in thought, word, and deed. In this case, for California, voice your support by using #protectProfBoaler across social media.
“As my sufferings mounted I soon realized that there were two ways in which I could respond to my situation -- either to react with bitterness or seek to transform the suffering into a creative force. I decided to follow the latter course.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.