A School System Exposes the Latest Bastion of Unfairness and Bias: Math

Source – Math, in case you didn’t already know, is racist.

That appears to be the contention of Seattle Public Schools, which has offered a course for K-12 students titled “Math Ethnic Studies.” The framework for the class lists multiple themes, what students will learn from those themes, and important questions to be asked.

The first theme, “Origins, Identity, and Agency,” is defined as “the ways in which we view ourselves as mathematicians and members of broader mathematical communities.”

“Mathematical theory and application is rooted in the ancient histories of people and empires of color. All human endeavors include mathematical thinking; from humanities to the arts to the sciences,” the framework continues.

Under “essential questions” students are asked the following questions, among others:

“What is my mathematical identity”

“How does it feel to be a Mathematician”

“What other mathematicians are in my learning community?”

“Is there an authority for math knowledge?”

“What stories are important to your cultural connection to mathematics?”

“What does it mean to do math?”

“How important is it to be Right? What is Right? Says Who?”

… The theme is defined as “the ways in which individuals and groups define mathematical knowledge so as to see ‘Western’ mathematics as the only legitimate expression of mathematical identity and intelligence.”

This is interesting. And the idea of math being subjective is not a new concept. I remember reading about this idea when I was in high school. Where mathematical truths were not immutable facts at all, determined by the precise, provable laws of arithmetic. But instead, those truths are determined by people from the government who’ll tell us what they are. I even remember the source material on that.

George Orwell’s “1984.”

In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it. It was inevitable that they should make that claim sooner or later: the logic of their position demanded it. Not merely the validity of experience, but the very existence of external reality, was tacitly denied by their philosophy. The heresy of heresies was common sense. And what was terrifying was not that they would kill you for thinking otherwise, but that they might be right. For, after all, how do we know that two and two make four? Or that the force of gravity works? Or that the past is unchangeable? If both the past and the external world exist only in the mind, and if the mind itself is controllable – what then?

So sure, why not? America sucks at math. As of the latest study, our students are currently 31st in the world in understanding of mathematics, between Latvia and the Czech Republic, and three spots behind Russia, a country run by oligarchs, mobsters and people who export brides for socially awkward introverts. Now we could say that’s not good enough. Hold our schools to a higher standard. Expect more from our kids. Get more involved in their studies as parents and make this a national priority like our ability to compete against the rest of the world depends on it.

But that sounds like a lot of work. So let’s instead just all agree the system is rigged against us. And totally in the favor of … other people. Now the Seattle schools haven’t told us which ethnic groups get favored treatment from math’s unfairness. But according to the world rankings, those people live in places like Singapore (1st), Japan (3rd), Canada (6th), Finland (8th), China (10th) and Ireland (11th). Which doesn’t exactly narrow it down.

But still. What do want, to nag our kids to study, end up fighting with them all the time and make them resent us? That’s lunacy. Let’s just tell them it’s not fair and they’re doing as well as they can under the circumstances because science is unfair. After all, Season 8 of “American Horror Story” isn’t gonna binge itself.

I just wish I’d known this when I was raising two very below average math students. Who were worse even than I was, which is saying something. I wasted a lot of time and energy telling them they needed to study more, do their homework and ask for extra help. I remember and entire school year of paying $55 a week for a tutor and having to drive my kid three towns over to meet with her. When I simply could’ve blamed math itself for being unfair to white, Irish Catholic suburban males who spend more time fighting the Battle of Stalingrad on XBox Live than they did on their books. Stupid me.

So thanks, Seattle, for showing us the way. Don’t study. Don’t learn. Don’t worry about it. Just focus on your “mathematical identity,” remember that it’s not important to “be Right,” and  2 + 2 = whatever they tell you it does. I’d weep for my country, but Big Brother is Watching.