Chapter 5: Fragile Learning in the Mathematics Classroom: How Mathematics Lessons Are not Just for Learning Mathematics

The “strong social turn” in mathematics education research (Lerman, 2006) has brought cultural, political, and social issues into close contact with what it means to teach and learn mathematics. In our work, we have been challenged by ideas, not in relation to the production of narratives of truth about the social world, but rather with the formulation of alternative windows to look into the practices of education, in particular, the highly socially valued practices of mathematics education. In this chapter, we discuss one central contention: When a diverse group of students in a classroom engages in mathematical learning in the classroom, they bring with them multiple resources of identification, based both on their previous experiences as well as on their future aspirations. Shifts in discourse continuously bring to the fore a variety of students’ identities as students engage in learning not only as “mathematics learners” or “future mathematics teachers,” but also as “football fans,” “musicenthusiasts,” “family members,” and so forth. We capture the shifts in discourse and in identification by characterizing discourse, identity, and learning as inherently fragile. The fragility of the classroom discourse, of learners’ identities, and of the learning processes allows us to propose that mathematics classrooms are sites not simply for learning mathematics. We believe our contention demands serious reflection and actions from mathematics teachers and in mathematics education research.