1. Learning should be real.
Students have long questioned the purpose of learning math, and for good reason. School math is divorced from real life.
We believe that math class should be a place where students think critically about the real world around them..
Contrived Questions
Using the "World"
to Look at Math
For ages, math class has relied on word problems involving contrived situations. Take the classic, How long will it take for the train to reach the station? When students finish this activity, they haven't learned anything about trains. Trains are merely a context for contextualizing math.
Activities like these have a place. But when they're all that students do, students reasonably ask, "Why am I learning this?" (Not only that, many teachers ask, "Why am I teaching this?")
Authentic Questions
Using Math
to Explore the World
Citizen Math lessons don't use the "world" to illustrate math. They use math to explore the world. For example, when students do the lesson "You're So Fined", they compare how long it takes for people with different incomes to pay off speeding tickets. The lesson involves linear functions...but it's about a real issue that affects real people.
That's not just clever wording. It's a fundamentally different approach to math that has a profound impact on both students and teachers.
