Who's Counting? A Survey of Mathematics Education Research 1982–1998

Abstract

This study provides a broad look at mathematics education research published between 1982 and 1998. The ERIC database was utilized to count and categorize more than 3,000 articles from 48 educational research journals. We identified the number of articles relating to gender, ethnicity, class, and disability that were published in journals from various categories. Attention was also given to grade levels, mathematical topics, and general educational topics in conjunction with each equity group. We conclude that, in comparison with research on ethnicity, class, and disability, research on gender was more prevalent and integrated into mainstream U.S. mathematics education research. Overall, the majority of research seemed to focus on student cognition and outcomes, with less attention to contextual or cultural issues.