This week when reading Fischbein's Psychology and Mathematics Education, the main point that came across to me was the fact that for years researchers have classified mathematics education as a part of a larger scientific area in which to apply cognitive psychology theories. This is no longer the case, as mathematics educators have identified unique features found in mathematics education that sets it apart from the other sciences. Fischbein mentions that Piaget's theories that were applied to mathematics education research for years do not actually fit. This is because "Piaget was not interested in the effects of instruction on the development of mathematical reasoning" and "his belief that intellectual development is essentially a logical one."
In 1976, an "International Group for Psychology of Mathematics Education" was developed to explore "the role of psychology in the teaching process and to do so in a systematic manner." I believe this is extremely important as it is difficult to apply general psychological theories to mathematics education; moreover, as Frischbein states, it is crucial that researchers look for "the interactions between psychology and mathematics education." I experience this daily in my classroom setting. You can try to plan the perfect lesson, taking into account the curriculum and the individual needs of you students, however, in practice, there always students that will need further support or different support that could not have been anticipated. These needs of students vary on a daily basis and general psychological research trends cannot account for daily variances in student's needs.
I think Fischbein explains it well when he states, "the psychological perspective in mathematics education research is genuine psychology, characterized by the style of thinking and its focus on the dialects of the subjective world of the person versus the environmental constraints."
It is interesting that the article you came across seems to believe that there is a particular distinction between psychology and mathematics education and that psychological studies based on mathematical means done by Piaget are not necessarily a strong indication that the two disciplines are closely correlated. I agree that the general psychological research cannot account for the unique needs of the students on a daily basis. However, education and teaching methodologies are very much based on students' psychological development. Thus, many aspects of mathematics education are deeply embedded in the findings of educational psychological research. For example, David's article this week on the dual nature of mathematical concepts is very much funded on how human psyche functions and establishes mathematical concepts. Psychology indeed opens the way for findings in mathematical education and I argue that these findings are not and cannot be purely psychological without any mathematical stance.
ReplyDeleteI am curious as to which features set mathematics aside from the sciences when applying psychological theories. Many of the sciences are based around the notion that a person is able to observe, make logical predictions, and associate past knowledge with new information. As the brain develops, these abilities begin to present themselves. The same can be said for mathematics education. I wonder what particular differences there are between mathematics and the sciences and how they relate to psychological theories. I do believe that many educators are learning how the different facets of psychology in education are affecting our students. From behaviour, to attention/ability to focus, to self-awareness, we are all learning ways to address the different psychological needs of our students.
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