The Role of Environmental Knowledge in Early Mathematical Performance

Abstract

It is often said that the best way to teach mathematics is to expand upon the knowledge and skills children bring to school. The question which needs to be answered then is what are these skills and knowledge? The specific approach adopted here is a cross-cultural survey of the early environmental mathematical experience of children and the effects this experience has on their school performance. The focus will be on the non-industrialized world. This approach was adopted because the environmental experience of children in non-industrial countries is perhaps richer and more varied than the early environmental experience of children from industrialized nations. Customs, economic systems, habitats, and culture differ considerably in non-industrial nations and children are often exposed to adult functions at an early age. The paper is organized in the following manner. The first section examines mathematical knowledge which is explicitly acquired outside school. The second section will deal with mathematical knowledge which is implicitly acquired or implicitly available through participation in environmental activities. The third section will examine the role of environmental experience in a range of supplemental abilities which influence mathematical cognition. A note of caution needs to be kept in mind while reading this paper. The most comprehensive work on early mathematical knowledge comes from two disparate parts of the world, West Africa and Papua New Guinea. While these areas reflect complex and varied environments, they do not capture the range of economic, geographic and cultural diversity which exists in the world. Different environments and different responses to those environments may well develop different types of mathematical knowledge. Thus the conclusions drawn from the data should not be generalized too far. Rather they should be viewed as indications and possible trends.