Rethinking Teaching and Learning Mathematics for Social Justice from a Critical Race Perspective

Abstract

What is teaching and learning mathematics for social justice (TLMSJ)? How has TLMSJ been taken up in mathematics education—both historically and contemporarily? Along with unpacking these two central questions, another purpose of this article is to assess the current capacity and stance of TLMSJ toward addressing issues of racial injustice. We begin with an overview of TLMSJ as an epistemic perspective and introduce an analytical lens based on selected tenets of critical race theory. We then use this analytical lens to examine extant TLMSJ scholarship toward broadening the possibilities of justice-oriented scholarship in mathematics education.