Projects per year
Abstract
This presentation reports on a collaboration with several remote NT communities and schools who want to teach more mathematics in their own languages. We are looking at how each language expresses mathematical concepts and planning a series of mathematics lessons that can be taught in each language.
Lots of children who speak Indigenous languages don’t get to learn school mathematics in their own languages, even in some bilingual schools. One reason is that it is hard to work out how to use a language for school maths for the first time, or if people haven’t been doing it for a long time. There are not enough books and other resources to help.
Research shows clearly that children learn mathematics best in languages that they can understand and use well. It’s much harder for them to learn maths in English while they are just starting to learn English. Using a language for school subjects like mathematics can also help keeps languages strong.
Our project is a collaboration with several remote NT communities and schools who want to teach more mathematics in their own languages, focussing on the early years of school - Foundation to Year 2 in the Australian Curriculum. We are starting at looking at how each language expresses mathematical concepts and processes, with the goal of developing a series of mathematics lessons that can be taught in each language. We are also looking at what teaching of mathematics in Indigenous languages is already happening or has happened in the past.
This project will then bring together the people and learning from the different languages and communities to share knowledge and create guidelines for identifying and developing mathematics language that can help other schools and communities in the future.
The presentation may (hopefully) be co-delivered by First Nations team members from Areyonga School, Groote Eylandt Bickerton Island Primary College Aboriginal Corporation and/or Shepherdson College, depending on availability to attend the conference.
Lots of children who speak Indigenous languages don’t get to learn school mathematics in their own languages, even in some bilingual schools. One reason is that it is hard to work out how to use a language for school maths for the first time, or if people haven’t been doing it for a long time. There are not enough books and other resources to help.
Research shows clearly that children learn mathematics best in languages that they can understand and use well. It’s much harder for them to learn maths in English while they are just starting to learn English. Using a language for school subjects like mathematics can also help keeps languages strong.
Our project is a collaboration with several remote NT communities and schools who want to teach more mathematics in their own languages, focussing on the early years of school - Foundation to Year 2 in the Australian Curriculum. We are starting at looking at how each language expresses mathematical concepts and processes, with the goal of developing a series of mathematics lessons that can be taught in each language. We are also looking at what teaching of mathematics in Indigenous languages is already happening or has happened in the past.
This project will then bring together the people and learning from the different languages and communities to share knowledge and create guidelines for identifying and developing mathematics language that can help other schools and communities in the future.
The presentation may (hopefully) be co-delivered by First Nations team members from Areyonga School, Groote Eylandt Bickerton Island Primary College Aboriginal Corporation and/or Shepherdson College, depending on availability to attend the conference.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Publication status | Unpublished - 2023 |
| Event | PULiiMA: Indigenous Languages and Technology Conference - Darwin, Darwin, Australia Duration: 21 Aug 2023 → 25 Aug 2023 https://puliima.com/ |
Conference
| Conference | PULiiMA |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Darwin |
| Period | 21/08/23 → 25/08/23 |
| Internet address |
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'Teaching mathematics in Indigenous Australian languages'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Finished
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MiIL: CSFP Identifying mathematical expression for teaching and learning mathematics in diverse Australian Indigenous languages
Edmonds-Wathen, C. (Principal Investigator/Chief Investigator A) & Bednall, J. (Principal Investigator/Chief Investigator A)
1/11/21 → 1/07/23
Project: Research