Lessons in educational equity: Opportunities for learning in an informal geometry class.

Abstract

In this study I redress the Black/white Achievement gap in mathematics by examining the opportunities for higher level mathematics learning in an informal geometry course. Across school districts in the US, the Black/White achievement gap in mathematics continues to widen, despite increased access for students of color to higher level mathematics courses such as geometry. In this study I promote a reconsideration of the notion of access by arguing that access must be understood as more than just course-taking opportunities at the school level. We must also carefully consider the actual opportunities for learning that exist at the classroom level in courses designed to support students who are systemically vulnerable and traditionally have not had access to higher level courses. I closely examine the content and classroom interactions of a purportedly successful teacher of informal geometry, a course that is systemically touted as a means for students who struggle in more traditional mathematics courses to gain access to higher level mathematics learning. I identify how the teacher's beliefs of herself and of her students as learners of mathematics influenced the planning and enactment of the learning opportunities that occurred in the classroom. I then examine what opportunities existed for students to access to higher levels of mathematical knowledge and learning. Finally, I analyze the role of curricula, through the use of special lessons, in influencing opportunities for learning in this same class. The data suggest that opportunities for geometry learning were limited in the classroom by both the curricular content of the course as well as the teaching processes and interactions that occurred in the classroom. Further, the use of a curricular intervention revealed new possibilities for both the students as well as the teacher. Classroom practice in the informal geometry class was influenced by three main factors: the teacher's beliefs, the nature of the curriculum, and the larger system of schooling. The study presents a cautionary tale of what may occur if we do not consider the content of courses designed to support struggling students and sheds light on the persistence of the achievement gap.