Research Final Draft

Running head: MATHEMATICAL DISCOURSE COMMUNITY 1
Discovering the Mathematical Discourse Community

Stacy Sieun Jang
Pasadena City College
STACC 1A
May 05 2014

MATHEMATICAL DISCOURSE COMMUNITY 2
Abstract
Mathematics is the language of life. A mathematical discourse community is defined as a group
of people building a community of learners, encouraging each other as mathematicians, pressing
and encouraging disequilibrium, promoting risk-taking and constructing a deeper understanding
of the world of mathematics. From an expansive perspective, everyone belongs to the
mathematical discourse community, however the mathematical discourse community, which is
comprised of people at all mathematical levels, have problems arisen associated with a number
of erroneous beliefs about math. Mathematics is often perceived as the most discoursing subject
that a lot of people have trouble with. Women who are in this discourse community struggle for
equity, respect, and acceptance because generally people believe men are better at doing
mathematics. In addition to women mathematicians, ethnic minority students limited
opportunities to get involved in the mathematical field due to others perceptions of their ability
to do mathematics. Upper level mathematics classes are still populated with relatively few black
and Latino students. Changing the early childhood math education with the idea of transforming
mathematics classrooms into academic communities where students engage in mathematical
discourse and collaborative learning and getting rid of the prejudiced comments on the subject
especially for minority students and females will be possible solutions to the issues the discourse
community is facing. A little bit more of peoples attention to the female mathematicians,
minority students who lack the opportunities to get involved in advanced mathematics classes
and the current mathematics educational system will help to develop the mathematical discourse
community and foster future mathematicians.
Keywords: mathematics, discourse community

Formal Outline
I. Mathematics is one of the most useful and intensively interesting divisions of human
knowledge, and various kinds of members exist in the mathematical discourse community.
A. Mathematicians who are the experts in or students of mathematics are the members of
mathematical discourse community.
B. From an expansive perspective, everybody is a member of mathematical discourse
community.
C. True members of mathematical discourse community have the ability to think
creatively and flexibly and willingness to learn intensively.
II. A Linear Algebra course at PCC showcases some aspects of true mathematical discourse
community.
A. A mathematical discourse community discourages the teacher-centered learning
environment.
B. Working collaboratively in a mathematical discourse community allows the members
to gain the ability to communicate their mathematical ideas with the proper mathematical
language.
C. Being asked to not only solve but also prove the mathematical concepts helps the
students develop their logical reasoning skills.
D. A true mathematical discourse community encourages the members to form small
sub-discourse communities within the main discourse community.
III. Problems identified in the mathematical discourse community
A. The problems of mathematical discourse community are often associated with a
number of erroneous beliefs about math.
B. Females struggle for equity, respect, and acceptance in the mathematical discourse
community.
C. Ethnic minority students have not given equal opportunities to study upper level
mathematics.
D. Inferior learning environment of mathematics makes people have negative attitude
towards the subject mathematics.
E. The history of mathematics is generally not taught, and students doubt the importance
of mathematics and the applicability of mathematical concepts.
How to improve the mathematical discourse community
A. People should be encouraged to consider the need to create a culture in which math is
perceived as worthwhile and even enjoyable.
B. Math anxiety causes negative attitudes toward mathematics. Not only students, but
also children mathematics educators need to develop confidence against the fear.
C. Changing the teacher-centered learning environment to the student-centered learning
environment is important so that students can proactively communicate their
mathematical ideas.
D. To build firm teacher-student interactions in a math class will bring the discouraged
ethnic minority students and female students back to the mathematical discourse
community.

Mathematical discourse community and the importance
A strong background in mathematics is an excellent preparation for a broad variety of
other subjects and careers. At a high school or below level, students often perceive mathematics
only as a step towards graduation or completing what is needed to get by. However, Mathematics
is, in fact, one of the most useful and intensively interesting divisions of human knowledge.
Virtually, all parts of our human lives involve mathematics. Mathematics is the science of space,
number, quantity, and arrangement, whose methods involve logical reasoning and the use of
symbolic notation (Mathematic, n. and adj", 2013). According to the Oxford English Dictionary,
mathematics seems to be simply an act of logical reasoning of numbers using mathematical
symbols, but its a very extensive field of study with its numerous branches. It includes topics of
study such as Algebra, analytic Geometry and Trigonometry, Statistics, set theory and logic, etc.
Those subsections of mathematics share many of the same basic concepts and operations, yet at
the same time, they all differ in the types of mathematical concepts involved and in the types of
practical application of the results.
Thinking about how much mathematics is used in the real world sometimes in a
noticeable or unnoticeable way, mathematicians perceive mathematics as the language of life,
and everybody technically speaks the language of life in his or her own life. Regardless of what
types of mathematical topic a person studies, the Oxford English Dictionary actually defines a
person who is an expert in or student of mathematics as a mathematician. Then, in other words,
from an expansive perspective, every student can be seen as a mathematician. According to
Choudhury, who has conducted research on the discourse community of Mathematics,
discourse communities can be certain fields of study, and everyone who studies in that field
belongs to that community of discourse (Choudhury, 2010). To be more precisely described, a
general mathematical discourse community is a group of people building a community of
learners, encouraging each other as mathematicians, pressing and encouraging disequilibrium,
promoting risk-taking and constructing a deeper understanding of the world of mathematics
(Blanke, 2009). Since its inevitable for people to learn how to work with numbers to live our
lives, almost everyone in this world belongs to the mathematical discourse community even
though they are not the experts of mathematics.
However, knowing how to work with numbers is not the only thing that makes people to
be members of the mathematical discourse community. In todays education system, which
Paulo Freire refers to the banking system of education, students are only receptacles filled with
the content of educators narration (Freire, 2000). It is a widely agreed statement that
mathematics students of all levels must have the ability to think creatively and flexibly about
mathematical concepts that are sometimes abstract and indefinite. Mathematics is a logical
process which requires careful analysis and clear reasoning. People, who are filed away through
the lack of creativity, transformation, and knowledge in this misguided [banking] system of
[education], (Freire, 2000) dont meet the qualification condition to be mathematicians.
In addition to the widely agreed statement that mathematicians are able to think
creatively and flexibly, Dauben, the distinguished professor of History and the History of
Science at University of New York, defines mathematicians as who use logic to draw conclusions
and develop mathematical system (Dauben, 2014). As mathematics is a special kind of life
language, mathematicians have their own way of delivering their logical process using the
language. The way mathematicians demonstrate their reasoning is to write a proof. Reading,
understanding, and actually writing a proof is a significant part of the mathematical practice
(Weber, 2011). According to Jude Socrates, the author of the Portrait of Linear Algebra, a proof
is a sequence of true logical statements which convincingly and completely explains why a
mathematical theorem is true. (Socrates, 2013) Writing a proof requires complete understanding
of the mathematical theorem and the ability to develop and organize logical statements so that
the audience could be convinced by the proof. Obviously, the process of writing a proof cannot
be done without creative thinking skills and a great store of mathematical knowledge, and
without those qualifications, a person cannot be seen as a mathematician. Thus, a group of
mathematicians exclude people who are the products of banking system of education (Freire,
2000).
Because mathematics is such a broad subject, the work of mathematicians vary as well.
In general, the work of mathematicians can be divided into two big branch; pure mathematics
and applied mathematics. Dauben demonstrates that the purpose of pure mathematics is to seek a
way to advance human mathematical knowledge for its own sake without any immediate
practical use of mathematics. Instead, applied mathematics put its purpose on developing
mathematical techniques that could be used in other fields of the world. Commonly,
mathematicians specialize in one of the branches of mathematics and later choose to work in the
pure mathematics field or applied mathematics field.
The boundary between pure mathematics and applied mathematics is not always distinct,
and it is difficult to tell if a mathematician who works in the engineering field is primarily part of
mathematical discourse community or engineering discourse community. However, wherever
mathematicians work, Choudhury, who has conducted research on the discourse community of
mathematics, indicates that mathematicians share a common belief based on logical thinking,
and believe in hard facts, evidence, calculations, and accurate analysis of scenarios, ability to
estimate solutions to any problem, etc (Choudhury, 2010). The word, mathematics, comes from
a Greek word meaning inclined to learn, which means mathematicians have the passion for
numbers and learning. To them, mathematics is not just a step towards graduation or completing
what is needed to get by. Mathematicians dont perceive mathematics as a subject that requires
them to patiently seat down at a classroom in order for them to memorize the information given
by teachers. True mathematicians are those who are eager to learn about the world of useful and
intensively interesting division of human knowledge, mathematics, with the skills of creatively
thinking and logical reasoning.

A model mathematical discourse community - classroom environment
At around 2: 27 pm, people start to gather in front of the door of room R320 at Pasadena
City College. The crowd of people rush into the room. The seats get filled by tacit agreement on
the matter of taking their customary seats. There are about forty three desks and chairs for
students, and only seven of them are girls in this class. Due to the characteristics and nature of
this mathematical field of study, not many females are willing to take this class.
Before the professor walks into the room, guys gather in small groups by threes and
fours. Its very common to see people talk about their physics tests and homework questions in
this class because this math course is particularly for people who are interested in engineering,
computer science, and pure mathematics. Those three majors are interdependent, and for all
people enrolled in this class, physics class is the very fundamental class. Because of the
interdependence of everybodys major, this class forms a special discourse community.
According to James E. Porter, the author of Intertextuality and the Discourse Community, this
class is a discourse community composed of a group of individuals bound by a common
interest (Porter 38), which is learning Linear Algebra to transfer to four-year universities to
pursue their career as an engineering, computer science or mathematics major.
This Linear Algebra class is interestingly not a typical type of teacher-centered math
class. In most Math classes in todays educational system, teachers and professors provide
lectures and deliver the mathematical information needed to solve the mathematical questions. It
could be often seen as a routinely repeated mechanical process. A lot of times, what most
students expect to learn from their math classes and professors is simply how to perform well in
the tests. They are taking a math class because everyone is required to take it. Stein, who studies
how math educators can teach math more effectively, indicates that moving from teacher-
centered class to ones centered on student thinking and reasoning is one of the most difficult
recommendations to orchestrate mathematical discourse (Stein, M. K, 2001). A true
mathematical discourse community actually has the student-centered learning environment.
At 2:40pm, the class begins as the professor walks into the classroom. He briefly
introduces a new concept of Linear Algebra by showing his visually described lecture note. Then,
he hands over the authority to demonstrate the explanations of the concept to his students. The
rest of the class time is devoted entirely to group work. Once every week, all students consult
their thoughts about mathematical concepts and theorems with group members and discuss
deeply what they can to do understand those concepts in a well-constructed way. As James E.
Porter demonstrates, a discourse community may have indefinite boundaries. (Potter, L, 2008)
They form different kinds of small discourse communities with the main discourse community
based on their complex relationships in order to support each other, and those communities play
a role of well-intentioned competition group as well. According to Blank, who has done research
about understanding Mathematical Discourse over the past 30 years, participating in the group
work is a way to practice the idea of transforming mathematics classrooms into learning
communities where students engage in mathematical discourse and collaborative learning
(Blank, 2009). By participating in the group work, all students consult their thoughts about
mathematical concepts and theorems with group members and discuss deeply what they can to
do understand those concepts in a well-constructed way.
Solving mathematical problems collaboratively in a learning community allows students
to share different ways of logically approaching a difficult problem and learn to demonstrate
their process of reaching to a solution in a well-organized way. Because students are expected to
be able write cogent proofs with clear justifications, they learn how to use their imagination and
the ability to display their logical mind and critical thinking skills properly in order to make other
people understand their mathematical language. According to Fosnot, a professor of Education at
City College of New York who has been studying mathematics education, students become the
evaluator of their own thinking and also that of others by communicating their mathematical
ideas and conjecture, and they eventually develop an amazingly deeper understanding of
mathematics (Fosnot, 1996). When students actively attempt to communicate their mathematical
ideas, they themselves create the optimum conditions for effective learning because they become
aware of the importance of understanding the math concept than getting the right answer.
Sharing their process of solving the math problems also helps them learn from one anothers
creativity.
Sometimes, the subjects of the students discussion such as a logical proof problem, they
meet together outside of class or stay in the classroom late in order to finish their thoughts. When
taking account of the fact that this class meets four days a week, students willingly devote plenty
of time to this class. It is an inevitable situation as this mathematical discourse relies on the act
of articulating mathematical ideas or procedures through talking, asking questions, and writing
(NCTM, 2000). True members of the mathematical discourse community all share a common
trait, which is believing everything including an educated guesstimation can be calculated or
proved according to Choudhury. This Linear Algebra class is a group of true members of
mathematical discourse community who rigorously strive to communicate with each other and
deliver their logical thinking cogently with the mathematical language.
Problems identified in the mathematical discourse community
The mathematical discourse community, which is comprised of people at all
mathematical levels, dont seem to be a very problematic discourse community, but there are
some problems arisen in the discourse community that people need to pay more attention to.
Those problems are often associated with a number of erroneous beliefs about math. Women
who are in this discourse community struggle for equity, respect, and acceptance because
generally people believe men are better at doing mathematics. Females have limited
opportunities to get involved in the mathematical field. In addition to women mathematicians,
ethnic minority students have not given equal opportunities to learn mathematics due to others
perceptions of their ability to do mathematics. Upper level mathematics classes are still
populated with relatively few black and Latino students.
Peoples prejudiced thoughts about mathematics and negative attitudes also generate
issues. Mathematics is one of the most hated subjects, and people think mathematicians are
different from others. All these prejudiced ideas are sometimes from the inferior learning
environment of mathematics, which makes people have negative impression of mathematics. As
mathematical discourse community has tremendous impact on human life, people need to pay
more attention to the issues in order to overcome some distorted, stereotypic images of the field
and its practitioners.
There are very few female students enrolled in advanced math courses. The female
students in math classes sometimes get the feeling their peers or professors dont have high
expectations for them especially at the beginning of their semester. Until they prove themselves
to the male students and professor with their mathematical skills, female mathematicians are
often seen as the rare group of people who are less capable in mathematics. Gender differences
have been attributed to mathematical ability factors. According to Davis and Rimm who study
what affects people's education, mathematics is one of the male-dominated fields that convey
high status and good financial rewards (Davis, G. A., & Rimm, S. B, 1985). And, they indicate
that the underachievement of females in math is caused by the cultural prejudices from family,
school, and peer expectations which discourage their achievement and career aspirations in the
mathematical field. It is not that males have better abilities to understand mathematical concepts
by their birth.
Stereotype threat and lift have differential effects according to the gender of participants.
In order to have more female mathematicians involved in the mathematical discourse community,
people should try to eliminate the erroneous stereotype by exposing both females and males to
the women role models in STEM careers. In addition to that, educators need to be aware of the
effects of stereotype threat and also teach students how to overcome the threat with a growth-
mindset environment. It is found that girls in a growth mindset environment are less affected by
stereotype threat in math. Creating a growth-mindset environment in the classroom by
emphasizing that intellectual skills can be improved with effort and perseverance and that
anyone who works hard can succeed will prevent the female students from avoiding STEM
courses.
The lack of access and low expectations explain the mathematical achievement gap
between women and men. An African American woman mathematician, Hunt, who struggled to
get into the mathematical field, says, Encouragement is crucial in developing mathematical
talent (Albers, D. J., & Alexanderson, G. L, 2011). The failure to encourage females to enroll in
advanced math courses closes the window of opportunity for them to get involved in
mathematical discourse community. Upper level mathematics classes are populated with
relatively few of ethnic minority students. Students from black and Latino minority groups are
less likely than Asian American and white students to complete advanced mathematics classes.
Holloway who is the author of closing the Minority Achievement Gap in Math indicates in his
research that minority students as a group experience a less rigorous curriculum. Lower
expectations for these students often preclude the opportunity for them to take more rigorous
courses because of inadequate prior preparation (Holloway, 2004). When the minority students
are told that they are less capable of something, they are more likely to underestimate their
ability even if they possess the potential to perform well in higher level math classes. Their
underestimation of their own ability caused by other peoples low expectations results in more
racial inequities in mathematics environments. Again, it is not that the students from ethnic
minority groups lack interest in mathematics or dont have high educational aspirations (Walker,
E. N, 2007). It is often that their
opportunities to take advanced mathematics
courses are limited by other peoples
perceptions and assumptions of their ability
to perform mathematical skills.
The minority students are
discouraged by their family members to
study pure mathematics more deeply because it seems to them that it is difficult to get a job with
a mathematical degree. Even if the students are eager to learn more mathematics, often times,
they dont have supportive mentors around them. Predominantly minority schools dont often
offer rigorous mathematics classes, thus the students cant be given the same rage of course
options. The lack of access to higher-level math courses and trusted mentors contribute to the
current minority achievement gap in mathematics. More opportunities should be given to not
only the female mathematicians but also the ethnic minority students.
People encounter mathematics for the first time when their parents teach them how to
count from one to ten in their early childhood, and at that young age, nobody thinks of
mathematics and numbers as their nightmarish disaster. When I tell people that I am a math
major and I like mathematics, people sometimes give me the face expression, which implies that
they dont understand me at all. Some people directly ask me why I dont choose something else
thats more enjoyable and useful. In many mathematics classes, one of the frequently asked
questions is why we need to learn mathematics. Unfortunately, when students inquire about the
purpose of learning mathematical concepts, teachers are not able to gratify their intellectual
curiosity because they also often lack a deeper understanding of mathematics. The author of the
book, Mathematics minus Fear, illustrates an interesting idea that each type of classroom has
a special flavor. But of all these flavors, it is often that of the mathematics classroom that has left
the bitterest taste (Potter, L, 2008). Potter argues in his book that educational conditions of the
mathematics classroom influences the students just like any environment.
In todays education system, the history of mathematics is generally not taught, and
young children perceive mathematics as a pointless, useless subject. In fact at their mathematical
level, there are not many mathematical concepts, which are directly applicable in real life. They
cant see how mathematics is actually very broadly integrated in all aspects of human life. Young
childrens learning environment affects their potential and abilities. A mathematician who is a
specialist in geometry, Tom Banchoff, was told that he would never be able to become a
mathematician by his elementary math teacher. Yet, he was fortunate to realize the creative
aspect of mathematics when he was young. He found mathematics appealing to him, and he truly
has become an eminent mathematician despite his teachers discouraged haruspication (Albers,
D. J., & Alexanderson, G. L, 2011). It is possibly true that some people possess a better sense of
numbers, but not being able to fully understand mathematical concepts in a short amount of time
doesn't mean that person lacks the ability to perform mathematical skills. Mathematics is a field
that a lot of people have trouble with, and the education system of mathematics should be
improved.

How to improve the mathematical discourse community
First of all, the attitude toward mathematics is an important attitude toward mathematics
is an important factor that substantially influences how students perform in their mathematical
classes. Negative attitudes toward mathematics often translate into poor engagement which
inevitably leads to failure. People should more consider the need to create a culture in which
math is perceived as worthwhile and even enjoyable. There exists a culture in which it's ok to
be bad at math' (Southwood, 2011). In fact, interestingly, young children are not very much
affected by this strange culture in America. Sandra Sheppard who is the executive producer of
"Cyberchase," a PBS cartoon that helps the children to more enjoyably engage in math, discovers
that young children in general do embrace math. They love numbers, but some children start to
disengage and struggle at a certain point around third or fourth grade as they move through
school (Mari-Jane, W, 2003).
When children are firstly introduced to the subject, mathematics, not all of them find
mathematics interesting, but most of them find working with numbers to be engaging. Her
discovery that children often lose their interest in math when they are in the lower grades raises
questions about the mathematical educational system. When children encounter math for the first
time, mathematics is all about numbers and the four fundamental arithmetic operations. They
start to have a misperception or an early impression that if they are not able to calculate numbers
fast, then they are not good at math. Also, being tested at school makes them obsessed with
getting the right answer only, and they feel uncomfortable about making mistakes.
Sheppard who works as the executive producer of PBS children mathematical cartoon
emphasizes that mathematics is a subject that needs to be approached independently, but also
collaboratively because kids have different learning styles, strengths and weaknesses (Mari-Jane,
W, 2003). As they come across different types of mathematical problems, they sometimes make
mistakes and persevere to learn through their experiences. There is no exact manual to teach
math, learn math or even solve a math problem. Solving problems in different ways is strongly
advised for mathematics learning and teaching. There is, however, little data available on the
examination of teachers' openness to and evaluation of different solutions to the problems. The
need for openness to teach and learn mathematics is paramount. Mathematics is not about getting
the answer right. The most important part is to completely understand the concepts so that build
and develop further understanding. Gary Scarpello who has had a long career as a teacher points
out that students may not use every problem or equation they are taught, but the one thing they
will receive from learning math is the ability to think. Math is difficult, but if students stick with
it, they will eventually be able to comprehend the concept being taught and will begin to realize
that they are far more capable than they once thought (Scarpello, 2010). Students dont realize
the applicability of mathematics right away when they are not profound with the subject. It is
natural that the need to learn mathematics seems questionable to the students, but mathematics is
a foundational subject. Whatever field the students decide to go into later in their future, it cannot
be denied that they will acquire the ability to think from mathematics. Their persistence in an
attempt to comprehend the mathematical concepts will make them realize their potential and
capability to overcome challenges.
Most of mathematics classes have the form of teacher-centered learning environment. We
need to create an environment where students can proactively communicate their mathematical
ideas. In a teacher-centered class, students lose their interest and willingness to participate. They
become passive listeners especially when they are not familiar with the mathematical concepts
demonstrated by the teacher. While, helping kids understand how mathematics is actually very
broadly integrated in all aspects of human life is very important, unfortunately, when students
inquire about the purpose of learning mathematical concepts, teachers are not able to gratify their
intellectual curiosity because they also often lack a deeper understanding of mathematics. Gary
Scarpello who has been conducting research and workshops to provide effective teaching tips
and techniques for teachers report that students and elementary school teachers alike have some
level of math anxiety. At the root of this anxiety is a lack of confidence in one's ability to do the
math. (Scarpello, 2010) Mathematics has a built in fear factor known as math anxiety, and it is
not only the students but also the teachers, especially elementary school teachers that have math
anxiety. As most elementary school teachers do not hold a degree in mathematics, it is quite
common that teachers themselves dont like the subject and dont have a solid understanding of
mathematics. Even though what lower graders learn in their math class is not a very complicated
mathematical, teaching math could be a daunting task for some teachers. Developing this
confidence is an important part of teaching and learning math.
Developing the confidence also applies to the ethnic minority students and female
mathematicians who lack the sense of belonging to mathematics, which is the feeling of
acceptance in mathematical discourse community. Holloway who has studied ways to close the
minority achievement gap in mathematics explains that the quality of teacher-student
interactions is another area that has the potential to improve the mathematics achievement of
minority students. It is found that teacher behaviors make a difference in minority student
achievement in mathematics and that minority students get a benefit from teachers who expect
students of all racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds to achieve (Holloway, 2004). In general,
a good quality of teacher-student interactions affects the students achievement positively, but it
is urgently necessary especially for the minority students whose abilities are underestimated by
the society. To build firm teacher-student interactions in a math class, not only students
individual level of mathematics, but also students racial, cultural backgrounds need to be
carefully considered by teachers.

Conclusion
Mathematical discourse community is a general mathematical discourse community is a
group of people building a community of learners, encouraging each other as mathematicians,
pressing and encouraging disequilibrium, promoting risk-taking and constructing a deeper
understanding of the world of mathematics. Mathematics is a form of another language of the
world, and from an expansive perspective, everyone student belongs to the mathematical
discourse community. The mathematical discourse community, which is comprised of people at
all mathematical levels, have problems arisen associated with a number of erroneous beliefs
about math. Mathematics is often perceived as the most discoursing subject that a lot of people
have trouble with. Women who are in this discourse community struggle for equity, respect, and
acceptance because generally people believe men are better at doing mathematics. Females have
limited opportunities to get involved in the mathematical field. In addition to women
mathematicians, ethnic minority students have not given equal opportunities to learn
mathematics due to others perceptions of their ability to do mathematics. Upper level
mathematics classes are still populated with relatively few black and Latino students. Changing
the early childhood math education with the idea of transforming mathematics classrooms into
learning communities where students engage in mathematical discourse and collaborative
learning and getting rid of the prejudiced comments on the subject especially for minority
students and females will be possible solutions to the issues the discourse community is facing.
People should pay more careful attention to these issues because without the widely appreciated
mathematical field, its impossible to deal with phenomena that are difficult to analyze and yet
are important to our society (Jerald, 2006). Even if you are not familiar with mathematical
discourse community or you dont see yourself as a member of mathematical discourse
community, your life has been influenced by mathematics extensively and significantly. A little
bit more of peoples attention to the female mathematicians, minority students who lack the
opportunities to get involved in advanced mathematics classes and the current mathematics
educational system will help to develop the mathematical discourse community and foster future
mathematicians.

References
Albers, D. J., & Alexanderson, G. L. (2011). Fascinating mathematical people: Interviews and
memoirs. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Blanke, B. L. (2009). Understanding mathematical discourse in the elementary classroom: A
case study.
Campbell, K. T., Evans, C., & Mid-South Educational Research Association, M. S. (1993).
Gender Issues and the Math/Science Curricula: Effects on Females.
Dauben, J. W. (2014). Mathematics. In Academic World Book.
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum, 143-55.
Fosnot, C. T. (1996). Constructivism: Theory, perspectives, and practice. New York: Teachers
College Press.
Davis, G. A., & Rimm, S. B. (1985). Education of the gifted and talented. Englewood Cliffs, N.J:
Prentice-Hall.
Elliott, P. C., & Garnett, C. M. E. (2008). Getting into the mathematics conversation: Valuing
communication in mathematics classrooms: readings from NCMT's school-based journals.
Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Holloway, J. H. (2004). Closing the Minority Achievement Gap in Math. Educational
Leadership, 61(5), 84.
Jerald, C. D. (2006). "Love" and Math. Issue Brief. Center for Comprehensive School Reform
and Improvement,
Mathematian, n. and adj. (2013). In OED Online, Oxford University Press.
Mathematics, n. and adj. (2013). In OED Online, Oxford University Press.
Mari-Jane, W. (0003, May). You, minus the fear of math. Washington Post, The Minorities and
Math. (2000). IIE Solutions, 32(11), 8.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (2000). Principles and standards for school
mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Potter, L. (2008). Mathematics minus fear. London: Marion Boyars.
Quimbita, G., & ERIC Clearinghouse for Junior Colleges, L. A. (1991). Preparing Women and
Minorities for Careers in Math and Science: The Role of Community Colleges. ERIC Digest.
Scarpello, G. (2010). Tips for Teaching Math to Elementary Students. Education Digest:
Essential Readings Condensed For Quick Review, 76(1), 59-60.
Socrates, J. T. (2013). A portrait of linear algebra. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt.
Southwood, S. (2011). Taking the Fear Out of Math. Adults Learning, 22(6), 14-15.
Stein, M. K. (October 01, 2001). Mathematical Argumentation: Putting Umph into Classroom
Discussions. Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 7, 2, 110-12.
Walker, E. N. (2007). Why Aren't More Minorities Taking Advanced Math?. Educational
Leadership, 65(3), 48-53.
Weber, K., & Mejia-Ramos, J. (2011). Why and how mathematicians read proofs: an exploratory
study. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 76(3), 329-344.

Works Cited
Albers, Donald J., and Gerald L. Alexanderson. Fascinating Mathematical People: Interviews
and Memoirs. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2011. Print.
Blanke, Barbara Lynn. Understanding Mathematical Discourse in the Elementary Classroom: A
Case Study. ProQuest, UMI Dissertation, 2009. Print.
Choudhury, Abhirup. "Discourse Community of Mathematics." Weblog. SDSU Wiki. South
Dakota State University. Web.
Campbell, Kathleen T., Cay Evans, and MS. Mid-South Educational Research Association.
Davis, G.A., & Rimm, S.B. (1989). Education of the gifted and talented. (2nd ed). Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Dauben, Joseph W. "Mathematics." Academic World Book. World Book, 2014. Web. 2
Mar. 2014.
Fosnot, C. T. (2005a). Constructivism: Theory, perspectives, and practice (2nd ed.).
New York: Teachers College Press.
Fournier, Ron. The Outsiders: How Can Millennials Change Washington If They Hate It?" The
Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 26 Aug. 2013. Web.
Freire, Paulo. "The "Banking" Concept of Education." Readings for Revolutionary Writing.
Comp. Bedford. 143-55. Print.
"Gender Issues and the Math/Science Curricula: Effects On Females." (1993): ERIC. Web.
24 Mar. 2014.
Holloway, John H. "Closing the Minority Achievement Gap in Math." Educational
Leadership 61.5 (2004): 84. ERIC. Web. 26 Apr. 2014.
Jerald, Craig D. "Love" And Math. Issue Brief." Center for Comprehensive School Reform
And Improvement (2006): ERIC. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.
Jude Thaddeus Socrates. "Syllabus of Math 10 Linear Algebra." Pasadena City College, 2014.
Print.
Mari-Jane, Williams. "You, minus the fear of math." Washington Post, The May 0003: Regional
Business News. Web. 26 Apr. 2014.
"Mathematician, n.". OED Online. December 2013. Oxford University Press. 3 March 2014
"Mathematics, n.". OED Online. December 2013. Oxford University Press. 2 March 2014
Weber, Keith, and Juan Mejia-Ramos.
"Minorities and Math." IIE Solutions 32.11 (2000): 8. Business Source Elite. Web. 24 Mar.
2014.
mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
Porter, James E. "Intertextuality and the Discourse Community." Rhetoric Review 5.1 (1986):
34-47. Print.
Scarpello, Gary. "Tips for Teaching Math to Elementary Students." Education Digest: Essential
Readings Condensed For Quick Review 76.1 (2010): 59-60. ERIC. Web. 26 Apr. 2014.
Southwood, Sue. "Taking the Fear Out Of Maths." Adults Learning 22.6 (2011): 14-15. ERIC.
Web. 26 Apr. 2014.
Stein, M.K., (2001). Mathematical argumentation: Putting the umph into classroom discussions.
Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 7(2), 110-112.
Potter, Lawrence. Mathematics minus Fear. London: Marion Boyars, 2008. Print.
Quimbita, Grace, and Los Angeles, CA. ERIC Clearinghouse for Junior Colleges. Preparing
Women and Minorities for Careers In Math And Science: The Role Of Community
Colleges. ERIC Digest. n.p.: 1991. ERIC. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.
Walker, Erica N. "Why Aren't More Minorities Taking Advanced Math?." Educational
Leadership 65.3 (2007): 48-53. ERIC. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.
"Why And How Mathematicians Read Proofs: An Exploratory Study." Educational Studies In
Mathematics 76.3 (2011): 329-344. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Mar. 2014.

Annotated Bibliography
Allen, Paula Gunn. "Where I Come From Is Like This." Readings for Revolutionary Writing.
This text focuses on the Indian womens struggle to redefine themselves against
how societies define and view them. According to the author, the Indian women suffer
from the societal conflicts that are caused by having to identify with two opposed cultural
definitions of women. The author explains how she developed both positive and negative
images of women by seeing whats happening around her. By listening to her mothers
stories. She learned who she was, who she was supposed to be and whom she came from.
She recognized important roles women played in. This source is helpful to think about
traditional American Indian societies and how tribal sense of relationship affects Indian
Womens identities.

Blanke, Barbara Lynn. Understanding Mathematical Discourse in the Elementary Classroom: A
Case Study. ProQuest, UMI Dissertation, 2009. Print.
This book examines whether a teachers effective use of mathematical discourse
community in a classroom setting is influential. The author mainly discusses the effects
of a teachers engagement in the discourse community and also discusses how the
maintenance of mathematical discourse community enhances teachers and students
understanding of mathematics. The author does a great job on explaining and
emphasizing how the existence of effective mathematical discourse community can
change how students perceive the subject Math itself. This source is worth consideration
for people who are engaged in the mathematical education field or people who desire to
study more deeply about elementary students learning environments and outcomes.

Bird, John. How to Read Critically. Handout. STACC-ENG 1A, Pasadena City College:
Dr.Kirsten Ogden, 16 Jan. 2014.Print.
According to the author of this article, critical reading is one of the most
rewarding skills a student can have in college. Critical reading is a foundation of basic
reading; however we grow as readers will be improved with Critical Reading skills. This
article basically give you keys and tips to becoming a better critical reader. For
example, the tip to annotate a text helps for understanding the main points and key
ideas in a text. The article does a good job of numbering key points and ideas in order for
best practices in critical reading. The opening explains what critical reading is and how
it will help us become better thinkers and writers. At the end of the text the advice is
summed up for how to use critical thinking in our everyday lives. This article is useful for
students in high school and higher education, because modern students dont really know
what theyre reading, but if they follow the tips here, they will learn to annotate and
understand the material. This article is written without reference to any outside sources.

Chang, Candy. "Before I Die I Want to." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Nov. 2012. Web. 18
Jan. 2014.
Candy Chang insists that preparing for death is important even though we are
often discouraged to talk about death. She speaks about how she began to put the large
chalkboard on the wall of an abandoned house to make the public space more meaningful.
People in her neighborhood got a fabulous chance to share their personal aspirations in
public space, and Candy found clarity in her life through her project. This video source
does allow you to have a time to think about death, public space, your beloved people,
your aspirations, the meaning of life. She as a speaker does a good job on evoking
peoples emotions. Its helpful for everybody to think about what truly matters to him or
her, and the video helps everybody be motivated and encouraged.

Cooper, Belle Beth. "6 Pieces of Advice From Successful Writers" Fast Company. 6 Jan.
2014. Web. 19 Jan. 2014.
This article displays six most common pieces of advice from successful writers.
She believes that those pieces of advice that helped her a lot improving her writing would
help you improve your writing as well. Among the six tips, author especially focuses on
the first one, which is to give yourself permission to write badly, in order to make you
feel better about the hard work of writing great content. By accentuating the fact that all
great writers struggle with their drafts to publish their work, the author encourages
readers to use the trick to overcome the pain of writing because anybody has the potential
to write good content. The source helps readers explore what other writers routines to
write are like in order to learn from them. The author does a great job on featuring
actionable tips that non-writers can accept without feeling overwhelmed. This source is
great to casually begin to think about ways to improve your writing. Its helpful for
beginning writers to have a basic knowledge about how to start writing.

Choudhury, Abhirup. "Discourse Community of Mathematics." Weblog. SDSU Wiki. South
Dakota State University. Web.
This source defines a discourse community, and the author narrows his main topic
down specifically to a mathematical discourse community. After he introduces big
concepts of his subjects, he demonstrates why he thinks he is a part of mathematical
discourse community. He concludes everyone is part of a discourse community some
way or the other. Anyone can choose to be part of any discourse community depending
on his or her way of thinking. This source is helpful for those who are unsure why
mathematics can be a discourse community. It helps to see the concept of discourse
community from a broad perspective.

Dauben, Joseph W. "Mathematics." Academic World Book. World Book, 2014. Web. 2 Mar.
2014.
This source introduces what Mathematics is and how it is used in this world.
According to the author, a large number of Mathematics branches and its applications in
numerous other fields, a strong background in mathematics is excellent preparation for a
wide variety of careers. The author provides general ideas about Mathematics and
explains them in an easily understandable way so that anybody can learn that Mathematics
is one of the most important and interesting divisions of human knowledge. This source
is helpful for people who are not part of mathematical fields to get to know and
understand more about mathematics. Also, this source can be used to learn how
mathematics is applied in the real world.

Dillard, Annie. "The Writing Life." The Writing Life. New York: Harper & Row, 1989. Web.
18 Jan. 2014.
The author describes the process of writing from a line of words written from you,
a writer, and how the path you make during the process leads you to the end. For example,
a line of words is considered to be a miners pick, a woodcarvers gouge, a surgeons
probe and even a hammer. The author does a brilliant job on illustrating what a writer
does and how the words from the writer change using different metaphors. How the
author represents her ideas about writing and her vocabulary choice definitely deepen and
spark readers interest in her voice and writing. Its helpful to approach what writing is
from different perspectives and to have a chance to think more deeply about a writers
task. This source makes you use your imagination to understand the authors purpose, so
it helps you give it a try to actively think about what the author really wants you to know
about writing.

Duckworth, Angela Lee. "The Key to Success? Grit." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. May
2013. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.
According to the speaker, Angela Lee Duckworth, grit and high achievement have
a very closely related relationship. Grit, which is passion and perseverance for long-term
goals, decides who would stay until the end in school, military, business, etc. Though
people including the scientists, psychologists, and educators know little about building
grit, one thing she speaker is sure about is that growth mindset makes you keep motivated.
Believing that the ability to learn is not fixed will change you to be a person who thinks
failure is not permanent condition. Angela makes a great point of where the education
system needs to move toward from now on, and how we all have to be willing to fail to
start again. This source is great for people who feel they are not capable of something
because of their lack of talents. It will help you to follow your commitments and develop
grit.

Elbow, Peter. "Desperation Writing." Writing without Teachers. New York: Oxford UP,
1973. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.
According to Peter Elbow, in order to produce coherent thought, you need to
admit your condition, keep writing and organize your thoughts in your passive,
thoughtless mode. He introduces what desperation writing in its pure state is so that you
can extract your best perceptions and thoughts that contain your full energy. The author
made the process of writing easier by breaking down steps in order for readers to follow.
The questions after the text make sure that readers understand the main concept and
actually apply the concept on their writing. The author supports his suggestion with
detailed and well-explained activity examples. This source is useful to broaden the idea
of freewriting with the new concept of desperation writing as the basic concepts of
freewriting are implied in the new concept. Readers can build more developed ideas
about how to write with their authentic voice.

Elbow, Peter. "Freewriting." Writing without Teachers. New York: Oxford UP, 1973. Web. 18
Jan. 2014.
The author explains that regular freewriting practice improves your writing
effectively. He especially emphasizes that you should never edit while youre producing
your words in order to keep the natural voice of you. This source provides a solid
example of freewriting, which decreases the fear to start freewriting. The example helps
readers to concretize the idea of freewriting. The authors explanation of the reason why
writers habitually become obsessed with their errors is easily understandable. This source
is helpful for those whore not familiar with the idea of freewriting and beginning writers
who desire to improve their writing.

Freire, Paulo. "The "Banking" Concept of Education." Readings for Revolutionary Writing.
The author defines and introduces what a libertarian education is as he argues
against the concept of banking system of education. He compares the current education
model to depositing and discusses how this model fails students, and also he provides a
description of the student-teacher relationship in this model. He insists that this
misguided system causes the lack of creativity, transformation, and knowledge in todays
world. According to the author, the solution to this issue is to transform the educational
structure so that students can become beings for themselves. The author does a good
job on analyzing a new concept of libertarian education by giving a list of examples and
comparing the idea to something people are familiar with. Freires commentary and
analysis to develop the idea and how he slowly builds up the definition of libertarian
education are well organized. This source is helpful to learn about current education
systems issues and ways to deal with the issues in a positive way. Also, student writers
can learn what a definition essay is by looking at how the author develops the structure of
this work.

Fournier, Ron. The Outsiders: How Can Millennials Change Washington If They Hate It?" The
Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 26 Aug. 2013. Web.
The article analyzes the young Americans specifically born between 1982 and
2003. The author indicates that those young Americans are called Millennials. The author
discusses that even though Millennials are generally negative and cynical about the
political process and the government activities, they are committed to community service
and less ideological than the members of Baby Boom generation. The article also
provides an interesting comparison between civic minded Millennials and other great
civic generations that cycle through U.S. history. This source is useful for students who
desire to see how a profile essay looks like. Also, this article can attract todays young
Americans attention because this provides an opportunity for them to learn about their
generation.

Goldberg, Natalie. "Beginner's Mind, Pen and Paper." Writing down the Bones: Freeing
the Writer within. Boston: Shambhala, 1986. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.
According to Natalie Goldberg, having beginners mind is important to be a great
writer. She also demonstrates that different environments have an impact on your writing.
She believes that the different environments provide an effective approach for a broad
spectrum of ways to form your thoughts. By explaining which environment works best
for the author herself, she helps the beginners to feel relieved with the guidelines. She
gives interesting suggestions to the beginners about the equipment for more effective
writing. Its useful for people who are not sure about how to take the very first step to be
a writer and to set a comfortable environment to write.
Goldberg, Natalie. "First Thoughts." Writing down the Bones. Boston, MA: Shambhala,
2010. Print.
Natalie Goldberg discusses the importance of keeping your energizing first
thoughts in your work of writing. She offers six rules to successfully present your first
thoughts. Her rules insist that you never try to get control of what youre saying. She
specifically emphasizes how important it is to commit yourself to the regular writing
exercise for a full certain amount of time. This text does let you realize why your first
thoughts, which are fresh and inspiring, should be shown in your work. Through the text,
you can learn how your mind works as you follow the steps to try to directly show your
first thoughts. It helps those who are lost to capture what their mind really hope to say
and those who desire to be fully present in their work.
Goldberg, Natalie. "Writing as a Practice." Writing down the Bones. Boston, MA:
Shambhala, 2010. Print.
The author claims that regular, continual writing practice is definitely how you
improve your writing. According to Natalie Goldberg, if you get intensely involved in
writing practice whether you want to or not, you will eventually learn to trust your deep
self and to embrace your whole life. She points out that doing something regularly is the
way to train your mind. Practicing writing actually prevents you from habitually trying to
control what youre saying. Through this text, the author does a great job explaining how
writing practice without a destination, simply filling in blank notebooks, helps building
your ability to write. This source helps current writers and future writers who do not
know how to keep their inspiration and desire to write and cut through their resistance to
keep producing their words.

Grande, Reyna. The Distance between Us: A Memoir. New York: Atria, 2012. 1-38. Print.
Reyna Grande illustrates her early childhood stories in chapter one, two and three.
Her father leaves his family behind and goes to the U.S in order to earn money to build
his own house in Mexico when Reyna is two years old. Soon, he realizes that its not as
easy to earn money as he expected in the dream land, America, so he invites Reynas
mother to the U.S when Reyna turns four. Reyna and her two siblings are sent to their
grandparents house. They are given a corner of one room and the oldest one, Mago,
starts to take care of Reyna and Carlos, the middle one, like a mother. Since their
grandparents only take care of Elida, their cousin, they never feel protected and secure at
home. Also, they often need to deal with people who call them orphans, but nobodys
there to help them. What the young three kids can do is count on one another and dream
about their parents come back. The author explains well how her emotions changed in the
absence of her parents. She vividly delivers how she faced the time of abandonment and
separation as a young child.

Hooks, Bell. "Critical Thinking." Teaching Critical Thinking: Practical Wisdom. New York:
Routledge, 2010. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.
The author demonstrates that thinking is an action, and she believes that the
pleasure of working with ideas is rewarding. According to her, human beings all have the
ability to think and the desire to think from their childhood, but the desire fades away
when they get exposed to the education system for conformity and obedience only. The
author does a great job on encouraging readers to not only understand the concept of
critical thinking, but also start thinking passionately. With her definition of critical
thinking, she explains what make us resist to think critically, where our fear of thinking
comes from and what to do be critical thinkers. Source is helpful for people whore
willing to learn to embrace the power of thinking and understand the process of being a
critical thinkers.

Lamott, Anne. "Shitty First Drafts." Readings for Revolutionary Writing. Comp. Bedford. 229-
32. Print.
According to the author, writing a crummy first draft is the first step to write
something wonderful. The author encourages people who desire to write to trust in their
writing process. The emphasized point is that the first draft doesnt have to perfect. In
fact, its something you just get it down and something that could possibly let you know
what direction to take as you write. By sharing her own writing process and methods, the
author shows that professional writers go through the same process of writing a non-
perfect draft. The author reminds that a good piece of writing comes from the not-so-
good first drafts. Its well shown in the text that a good writing is produced by efforts not
by a genius writers talent. This text is great for people who struggle to bring themselves
to start writing because of their concern about their lack of professionalism.

Lawrence, Charles R. "On Racist Speech." Comp. Bedford. Readings for Revolutionary Writing.
233-37. Print.
The author declares that racial insults or speeches need to be regulated. He
strongly insists that everyone concerned with the racial issues find the way to engage
actively in actions to resist and counter the racist ideas. According to the author, all
people, especially all students on campus, need to be protected from racist speech under
the first Amendment. He provides several examples to support his argument, and the
importance of acting against those issues is emphasized. This source is helpful for readers
who are interested in racial insulting behavior and college educational environment
where all students have the right to learn safely.

Lee, Joon Sun, and Herbert P. Ginsburg. "Early Childhood Teachers' Misconceptions about
Mathematics Education for Young Children in the United States." Australasian Journal of
Early Childhood 34.4 (2009): 37-45. ERIC. Web. 1 Mar. 2014.

The source demonstrates nine common misconceptions about learning and
teaching mathematics for young children. The misconceptions are widespread among
early childhood mathematics teachers in the U.S, and they often interfere with
interpreting the new recommendations of childhood math education. The authors present
that now is the time for educators to examine and reflect on their own beliefs in order to
provide more effective and proactive early childhood mathematics education. This source
is specifically for current and future mathematics educators. The authors organize their
data in a very analytical way and stay objective. The authors provide a lot of facts about
young childrens educational environment to support their main point. This is a useful
source to discuss how a better educational environment for the children could be built and
developed actually by the educators.

mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
The text provides guidelines and recommendations for mathematics educators in
the U.S and Canada. The source mainly presents a common foundation of mathematics to
be learned, and the need for well-prepared teachers is strongly emphasized in the context.
As it is a discipline-based educational research, mathematics educators are highly
recommended to read this source with a close attention. The source does a good job on
examining what has been working well in the process of teaching Mathematics and what
needs to be done to provide a better learning environment to the students. This is very
helpful for people who want to closely look at what educators have to do to guide young
age students to build their mathematical understanding abilities.

Patel, Hetain. "Hetain Patel: Who Am I? Think Again." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Oct. 2013.
Web. 24 Jan. 2014.
The two performers mainly suggest the audience that they think about one
question: What makes us who we are? In order to help the audience examine questions of
identity, they briefly do a storytelling about Patel and how he thinks about ones identity
and language. According to him, even imitating somebody else often reveals something
unique about yourself. He shows that we often learn who we are by copying others by
sharing his childhood stories. He tended to copy his heroes such as Spider man, Bruce lee
and recently his father. He points out that whether he successfully copies his model or
fails, he becomes more like himself after the process of copying. Its a very creative and
entertaining talk with special effects the performers intentionally put to help the audience
understand the topic more effectively. They do a really great job on providing powerful
imagery and storytelling. Its useful to approach the idea of identity and language from a
different point of view with the help of the performers entertaining body artwork.

Pipher, Mary Bray. "What You Alone Can Say, Growing Your Souls, Diving in-getting Started."
Writing to Change the World. New York: Riverhead, 2006. 44-87. Print.
The author provides more deepened and detailed advice of the process of writing.
She focuses on explaining that we all have something we can say. Growing our souls is
one of the ways to effectively demonstrate the things only we can say, and also she
introduces little steps that will help us get started on our writing. According to her, as
we all have our own set of life themes and values, there is something one person alone
can say. She encourages us to find our voice, the essential of self in order to have better
self-understanding, which will help us learn to organize what we can alone say in the
right form of writing for ourselves. She emphasizes that the deeper we explore our own
lives, the more ways we will find out to express the connections we have with the great
human stories. This source is helpful to learn what a professional writer, the author, has
learned by a process of trial and error from her own experiences and history. The
strategies she recommends us to try are very well described with her opinions and her
own stories about herself.

Porter, James E. "Intertextuality and the Discourse Community." Rhetoric Review 5.1 (1986):
34-47. Print.
The author mainly introduces intertextuality and its connection to the idea of
discourse community in this article. According to the author and the concepts he
introduce, there exist relationships between all texts. In other words, all the texts are
linked to each other, and they cant be completely independent. Porter supports his
argument and the idea of iterability presupposition with several examples including the
story behind the Declaration of Independence, the Pepsi advertisement, etc. She also
believes that writers and the audience are mutually dependent. The author also states that
a writer is simply a part of a discourse community, which is is a group of people who
share a widely agreed set of common public goals and actively communicate to provide
information and feedback to each other according to John Swales. She concludes the
writers personal intention of the writing could be less important than the social contexts
within the discourse community. This source is great to learn new, interesting, yet very
convincing ideas of writing and to be enlightened about the interdependent relationships
existing between factors in the writing field. The provided examples help the audience a
lot to truly understand the concepts that are newly introduced in this article.

"Peter Elbow." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Nov. 2013. Web. 19 Jan. 2014.
This source gives information about Peter Elbow who is the inventor of the
technique freewriting. This encyclopedia source briefly explains how Peter started to
have interest in writing, and how he developed a self-analytical process of writing. The
contributor of this page introduces the main idea of his inventions, and books he wrote.
External links and other sources for further information are provided as well. This source
helps me understand how the idea of freewriting was created, and who Peter Elbow is.
Its helpful for people who are interested in Peter Elbows invention, freewriting, and
who needs further information about him and his idea.

Patel, Hetain. "Hetain Patel: Who Am I? Think Again." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Oct. 2013.
Web. 24 Jan. 2014.
The two performers mainly suggest the audience that they think about one
question: What makes us who we are? In order to help the audience examine questions of
identity, they briefly do a storytelling about Patel and how he thinks about ones identity
and language. According to him, even imitating somebody else often reveals something
unique about yourself. He shows that we often learn who we are by copying others by
sharing his childhood stories. He tended to copy his heroes such as Spider man, Bruce lee
and recently his father. He points out that whether he successfully copies his model or
fails, he becomes more like himself after the process of copying. Its a very creative and
entertaining talk with special effects the performers intentionally put to help the audience
understand the topic more effectively. They do a really great job on providing powerful
imagery and storytelling. Its useful to approach the idea of identity and language from a
different point of view with the help of the performers entertaining body artwork.

Pipher, Mary Bray. "Intro, Writing to Connect, Know Thyself." Writing to Change the World.
New York: Riverhead, 2006. 1-43. Print.
In Mary Piphers Writing to Change the World Introduction, chapter 1 and
chapter 2, the author mainly discusses how good writing can actually change the world
and also discusses the authors purpose of her book. She firstly demonstrates how much
power writers and their writing work possess. The main point the author tries to make and
infuse into the readers is that all writing is designed to change the world. According to
her, writers help readers construct larger, more expansive frames of reference so that
more of the world can be more accurately perceived. As she believes that people who
gain enlarged knowledge of the world have the power to change the world, she
encourages all of us to give it a try to write something that will possibly change this
world. The suggestion the author provides is that we need to write to connect because its
a good way to foster awareness and growth. Connections evoke ideas, feelings, and
actions, and having a connection is the true factor to develop positive changes. The
authors second suggestion is that its important to know yourself to present your
thoughts with inner clarity. Writing primarily come from your being, and when you
understand yourself, your writing reflects your soul and your core values which have
been shaped by your primary relationships and pivotal events you have experienced.
Each person has something he or she alone can say with his or her own voice and point of
view in order to see, analyze, feel the world. We need to explore our souls so that we can
display our unique thoughts, and our writing work doesnt have to be great literature to
impress the world. This source is helpful to write something more influential to the world.
It would be great to writers who desire to improve the quality of their writing work.

Stein, M.K., (2001). Mathematical argumentation: Putting the umph into classroom discussions.
Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 7(2), 110-112.
The author describes how developing mathematical arguments actually improve
classroom discourse through a various kinds of classroom activities. The source shows
how urban middle school students from low-income families could engage in collective
argument and also how teachers can break out of the role of sole evaluator of student
thinking and reasoning. The author explains the importance of mathematical discourse
community well, so its helpful for those who are interested in more active way of
learning and teaching mathematics.

Tan, Amy. "Mother Tongue." Readings for Revolutionary Writing. Comp. Bedford. 353-58. Print.
There exists a variety of Englishes people use even though you dont realize
them according to the author of this text. She discusses the connection between languages
and cultures that shape the way people see, express things and make sense of the world.
She particularly compares the language she grew up with, which is so-called broken
English spoken by her mother, and the language she normally use with native English
speakers in order to support her ideas. By explaining how she understands and
appreciates her mothers English, she reveals that one persons language ability cant
fully present the persons passion, intent, imagery, the nature of thoughts. All her main
points are well supported and explained with her real life examples. This is helpful for all
Americans, especially the native English speakers whose parents dont speak fluent
English to have openness of accepting differences and to see whats beyond the language.
Stacy Sieun Jang
526 West Huntington Dr
Arcadia CA 91007
213-760-9540
sjang@go.pasadena.edu
29 April 2014

Professor Carla D. Savage
Secretary of American Mathematical Society Department of Computer Science American
Mathematical Society
Box 8206 North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC 27695-8206 USA
919-515-7863

Dear Professor Carla D. Savage:

I am a passionate college student who is planning to go into the mathematical field in my near
future.

Enclosed is my research paper Mathematical discourse community. In writing this research
paper, I have tried to define what a mathematical discourse community is, identify problems a
mathematical discourse community has and suggest possible solutions to the issues.

As one of members of mathematical discourse community, learning more about the mathematical
discourse community was a great opportunity, and I believe that the mathematical discourse
community could grow with our effort and attention. I hope we all can work together to actualize
the plans to strengthen the mathematical discourse community and foster more promising
mathematicians.

Thank you for your time. If you have any further questions or responses, please contact me at the
noted telephone number and address.

Sincerely,

Stacy Sieun Jang

Research Final Draft

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Research Final Draft

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Running head: MATHEMATICAL DISCOURSE COMMUNITY 1

Discovering the Mathematical Discourse Community

You might also like