# Dismantling Racism in Mathematics Instruction **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 15, 2021, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dismantling-racism-in-mathematics-instruction/932992 "2021-02-15T22:33:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2021, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dismantling-racism-in-mathematics-instruction/932992/101 "2021-02-19T20:27:45Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’ve been tutoring a math class in a mostly-minority urban school, and i think some of the issues that paper send to be trying to address are real. I wouldn’t call them “white supremacy”, but i feel like a lot of the class is structured to reward blind obedience to authority, not critical thinking. And the core of math is critical thinking. Maybe I should read the paper for ideas. Do you think that’s because of the curriculum, the way the teachers are trained, or what? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2021, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dismantling-racism-in-mathematics-instruction/932992/102 "2021-02-19T20:38:22Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > What do the kids you teach think of those two sorts of problems? I remember my classmates hating word problems, they wanted to be asked ‘What’s 3 x 3/4?’ not some question involving buttermilk. I don’t know that they have much experience with a curriculum devoid of word problems. It’s a huge part of our math instruction, figuring out how to apply concepts to the real world, and _also_ how to apply the real world to the concepts (so, figuring out how to model mathematical phenomena; I’ve spent the last four months teaching seventh-grade algebra to fourth graders using dice, bingo chips, and a picture of a balance scale). ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dismantling-racism-in-mathematics-instruction/932992/103 "2021-02-19T20:55:39Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > Do you think that’s because of the curriculum, the way the teachers are trained, or what? It’s the curriculum. But i think the teachers have some flexibility, and could mitigate it. I’m trying to do so as a tutor. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dismantling-racism-in-mathematics-instruction/932992.md?page=5)