In India, a curriculum reform inspired by critical perspectives has sought to transform primary mathematics teaching and learning. It is aimed at strengthening socio-cultural-political connections between school mathematics and students' life experiences, thereby challenging traditional textbook culture. At the same time, this initiative has…

Assessment is a crucial factor in the implementation of curriculum reform. Little is known, however, on how curriculum changes can be reflected adequately in assessment, particularly if the reform concerns process skills. This issue was investigated for the case of assessing mathematical thinking in a mathematics curriculum reform for…

This paper aims to critique and develop neo-Vygotskian work in mathematics education from (i) within the Vygotskian and activity theoretic tradition, and where necessary from (ii) a Bourdieusian perspective. First, I critique Roth and Radford's (2011) version of Cultural-historical Activity Theory, suggesting that a classroom episode presented as…

This paper discusses a new philosophical perspective for ethnomathematics which articulates Ludwig Wittgenstein's and Michel Foucault's theoretical notions. It is conceived as a theoretical toolbox which allows the analysis of, on the one hand, the mathematical language games of different forms of life and their family resemblances and, on the…

Changes in school mathematics curricula, pedagogy and assessment, and as a consequence the pressure for changes in initial teacher preparation, are consequences both of government policy initiatives and pressure from unofficial agents such as the research community, teachers and others, though with great variation across the world. In the case of…

This study brings together two lines of research on teachers' affective responses toward mathematics curriculum reforms: their concerns and their efficacy beliefs. Using structural equation modeling to analyze data on 151 elementary mathematics teachers' concerns and efficacy beliefs 5 years into a mandated curriculum reform on problem solving,…

Describes the recent evolution of Portuguese basic education in which the concept of competence and the process of curriculum development became major aspects of an innovative movement at a national level. Describes the context and explores the concept of competence, and presents a formulation for the characteristics of mathematical competence for…

Describes, in a case study, the growth in reasoning ability with fractions of one student in a newly developed program of 30 lessons during one whole school year. Indicates that the program and its teaching stimulated the progress of an average performer in mathematics. (Author/MM)

Many mathematics departments usually teach a variety of courses for students from different science departments and even from different faculties. These "service" courses are usually taught in the same way as the courses for mathematics major students. However, in science, because of the need to better analyse and interpret experimental…

This paper reports on the conclusions drawn from an investigation of the modern mathematics reform movement in Brazil. The main focus is the dissemination of reform ideology to the Brazilian mathematics education community and the outcomes resulting from misinterpretations of the intended curriculum during the implementation process. (Author/JJK)

This article gives a brief account of secondary school mathematics curriculum development in China. Some experimental teaching materials and teaching methods are introduced. One of the most influential projects is described in detail. (Author/PK)

An educated citizenry is essential to China's modernization and has led to the national goal of nine years of compulsory education for all students by the year 2000. Identified and discussed are four critical areas of concern in mathematics education: educational theory, technology, instruction, and assessment of teaching. (Author/MDH)

Presented is the development of school geometry in contemporary Greece since the era in which the secondary education system was established (1836). Identified and interpreted are the reasons for the endurance of Euclid's Elements as the basic component of school geometry in Greece. (KR)

Discusses the views and attitudes of 7 mathematics teachers, 19 7th- and 10th-grade students, and others participating in a pilot curriculum development program stressing active methodologies and group work. Teachers approved of the new orientations but complained about the design and implementation of the program. (Contains 24 references.)…