2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Board 268: Engineering Connections in Culturally-Responsive Mathematical Modeling Problems

Presented at NSF Grantees Poster Session

This poster presents findings from design and early implementation work of the NSF DRK-12 project, X [blinded for review], which positions 6th and 7th grade students as decision makers in their own learning, integrating culturally responsive mathematical modeling problems into their regular curriculum. We take a sociocritical perspective on modeling, supporting students in using mathematics to understand their life experiences and, when appropriate, to challenge the existing social order (e.g., Aguirre et al., 2019; Author, 2021; Cirillo et al., 2016; Felton-Koestler, 2020). By learning to recognize mathematical dimensions of their emerging identities in classroom settings, we hope to inspire excitement about mathematics and boost students’ experiences of mathematical agency (Boaler & Greeno, 2000).

Our approach to task design within mathematical modeling is also grounded in the Models and Modeling Perspective (Lesh & Doerr, 2003), which aims to engage students with problem-settings typical of mathematical work beyond school (Lesh, Hamilton, & Kaput, 2007). Such problems often involve trade-offs or feedback; where goals (e.g., “fair distribution of resources” or “comfortable living space”) must be quantified before they can be tackled mathematically; and where one is often interested in optimizing, maximizing, or minimizing these quantities. This approach to modeling connects modeling with engineering (Diefes-Dux et al, 2008; Hamilton et al, 2008) in ways that we explore in the activity we present in this poster.

The Homeless Shelter task (Author, 2021) invites students to create a design for an individual mini-shelter for the homeless. Students are introduced to the problem through videos showing how communities across the US have been implementing such shelters; the problem is also situated locally in the particular needs of the homeless population in the communities served by our partner schools. Given the goal to produce many of these mini-shelters using a fixed budget, students are faced with the challenge of creating a design that optimizes the qualities they believe most important within realistic budgetary constraints (Authors, in preparation). Students work in groups of 3-4 to develop a shared design. Each group is given a price sheet with various items they can incorporate—including plywood of different thicknesses, different potential materials for windows, etc. These options provoke or reinforce students’ recognition that while the size (i.e., enclosed volume) of a mini-shelter is an important consideration, they value additional factors (such as sturdiness, light and ventilation, etc) as well. In addition, we provide material support for student groups to envision and communicate their mini-shelter designs.

In this poster, we analyze video data and student-created artifacts from our initial implementations of this activity, describing the distinctive design rationales and the strategies for mathematizing and optimizing that emerged in different groups’ work. We use discourse analysis (Gee, 2014), defining discourse broadly, to include multimodal communication (Radford, 2014). We present three illustrative cases, describing groups’ distinctive approaches and the mathematical insights that they produced.

Authors

Dr. Corey E. Brady http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-4086-9638 Vanderbilt University [biography]

Corey Brady is assistant professor of the Learning Sciences in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Vanderbilt University. His research focuses on mathematical and computational thinking and modeling, with a particular emphasis on supporting and understanding the collective learning of classroom groups. He partners with teachers and schools to support and understand new forms of STEAM activity that foster the participation of all learners. Prior to entering academia Corey worked in industry, leading the design and development of Texas Instruments’ TI-Navigator system (2001-2006). He has also been a classroom teacher, at middle school, high school, and community college levels. Corey holds degrees in Pure Mathematics (MS), English Literature (MA), and Mathematics Education (PhD).
Dr. Hyunyi Jung University of Florida [biography]

Hyunyi Jung is an assistant professor of mathematics education at the University of Florida. Her research focuses on the learning and teaching of mathematics as a humanizing practice. She cares about students’ authentic mathematics learning experiences in safe spaces and has devoted her career to working with students and teachers to enact and study mathematical modeling. She currently serves as a Department Editor for one of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)’s journals, Mathematics Teachers: Learning and Teacher PK-12 in its Ear to the Ground Department. She served as the president of the Graduate Student Education Council at Purdue University (2012-2013) and a director of mathematical modeling summer camps and after-school programs (2018-2020).
JOSE DAVID DE LEON ALEJANDRO University of Florida
Dr. Chonika C Coleman-King University of Florida [biography]

Dr. Chonika Coleman-King is currently Assistant Professor of Teachers, Schools, and Society at the University of Florida where she also serves as the Coordinator for Curriculum and Research of the new equity-centered elementary teacher education program. She has been named Director of the Collaborative for Equity in Education, a university center that focuses on building collaborations that advance equity-centered initiatives and research endeavors. Dr. Coleman-King’s research interests include the development of anti-racist teachers, culturally responsive STEM education, Black mothering, and the experiences of Black immigrant and Black American youth in U.S. schools. Dr. Coleman-King is the author of the book, The (Re-)Making of a Black American: Tracing the Racial and Ethnic Socialization of Caribbean American Youth which documents the complex interplay between race, class, and immigrant status for Afro-Caribbean immigrant youth and the role of schools and families in their identity development.
Zandra de Araujo University of Florida
Kayla Sutcliffe University of Florida [biography]

Kayla is a doctoral student in the Curriculum and Instruction program specializing in mathematics education at the University of Florida. She has more than eight years of elementary teaching experience and has eight activities published on Teach Engineering, a standards-based classroom tested digital collection of engineering activities and lessons. Her research interests include perspectives on mathematical strategies implemented at the elementary level and mathematical modeling.

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