What is it about?
This paper describes a project where a linguist and a mathematics teacher worked with paraprofessional Indigenous (Yolŋu) teachers to determine an effective language for teaching mathematics in two remote (NorthEast Arnhem) Indigenous schools. The role of language in mathematics is explored and the first language (Yolŋu Matha) use by both teachers and students is examined in the context of the maths ideas it addresses.
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Why is it important?
Remote Indigenous students constitute one of the lowest performing cohorts in National and International numeracy tests. Allowing students to learn mathematics in their own language may contribute significantly to changing this. Observations during this project revealed students were able to engage in first language discussions and negotiations with their teacher (a Yolŋu paraprofessional) and each other concerning their own mathematics learning and meaning making.
Perspectives
This paper was important for my colleague and I in that it addresses and publicises issues encountered by an all too commonly overlooked people. I believe it also demonstrates some of the potential of cross-disciplinary research (mathematics and linguistics in this case). The ideas explored here have since been expanded and developed as a PhD research into the linguistic details and academic impact of teaching mathematics using Indigenous students' first language.
John Bradbury
RMIT University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Number and two languages in the early years, Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, January 2013, John Benjamins,
DOI: 10.1075/aral.36.3.07wil.
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