Abstract
In this paper I introduce some of the central features of a theoretical framework-a language of description-which has been developed for the sociological analysis of school texts, in particular, school mathematics texts. My approach is to introduce the language through the practical description of extracts from the texts which were analysed in its development. This also allows me to make some empiricial claims about the texts themselves and, insofar as they are representative of the wider practice, of school mathematics, at least in England and Wales. At the end of the paper, I also give some indication of how the language of description is articulated with broader sociological issues.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
AlthusserL.: 1971, Lenin and Philosophy, New Left Books, London.
BernsteinB.: 1977, Class, Codes and Control, Volume 3: Towards a Theory of Educational Transmissions, second edition, RKP, London.
BernsteinB.: 1990, Class, Codes and Control, Volume 4, RKP, London.
BernsteinB.: 1995, Pedagogy, Symbolic Control and Identity: Theory, Research, Critique, Taylor & Francis, London.
BourdieuP.: 1990, The Logic of Practice, Polity, Cambridge.
CoombeJ. and DavisZ: 1995, ‘Games in the mathematics classroom’ in Z.Davis (ed.), Exploring Mathematics Teaching and Teacher Education, Mathematics Education Project, Rondebosch.
DerridaJ.: 1981, ‘Semiology and grammatology’, in Positions, Athlone Press, London.
DowlingP. C.: 1991a, ‘Gender, class and subjectivity in mathematics: A critique of Humpty Dumpty’, For the Learning of Mathematics 11(1), 2–8.
DowlingP. C.: 1991b, ‘A touch of class: Ability, social class and intertext in SMP 11–16’, in D.Pimm and E.Love (eds.), Teaching and Learning School Mathematics, Hodder & Stoughton, London.
DowlingP. C.: 1992, ‘Textual production and social activity: A language of description’, Collected Original Resources in Education 16(1), 1–74.
DowlingP. C.: 1994a, ‘Discursive saturation and school mathematics texts: A strand from a language of description’, in P.Ernest (ed.), Mathematics, Education and Philosophy: An International Perspective, Falmer, London.
Dowling, P. C.: 1994b, ‘The sociological analysis of pedagogic texts and English for educational development’, paper presented at the Academic Development Centre, University of the Western Cape, April 1994, available from the author.
DowlingP. C.: 1995a, ‘A language for the sociological description of pedagogic texts with particular reference to the secondary school mathematics scheme SMP 11–16’, Collected Original Resources in Education 19(2), 1–438.
Dowling, P. C.: 1995b, ‘Juggling pots and texts: Reflections on self-instruction, apprenticeship and teaching’, Plenary address to the Primary Mathematics Project 2nd Annual Conference, Bellville College of Education, Kuilsrivier, South Africa, April 1995, proceedings.
Dowling, P. C.: 1995c, ‘The analysis of texts: Preparation for a language of description’, presented at the annual conference of the Southern African Association for Research in Mathematics and Science Education, University of Cape Town, January 1995, proceedings.
DowlingP. C.: 1995d, ‘Discipline and Mathematise: The myth of relevance in education’, Perspectives in Education 16(2), 209–226.
Ensor, P.: 1995, ‘From student to teacher: Continuity or rupture’, presented at the Kenton Educational Association Conference, Grahamstown, October 1995.
FoucaultM.: 1977, Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison, Penguin, London.
HodgeR. and KressG.: 1988, Social Semiotics, Polity, Cambriege.
Johnston, J.: 1993, ‘The construction of mathematical ability: An analysis of text’, presented at Research into Social Perspectives of Mathematics Education, Institute of Education, University of London, December 1993.
LaveJ.: 1988, Cognition in Practice: Mind, Mathematics and Culture in Everyday Life, CUP, Cambridge.
Lévi-StraussC.: 1972, The Savage Mind (La Pensée Sauvage), Weidenfeld & Nicholson, London.
LuriaA. R.: 1976, Cognitive Development: Its Cultural and Social Foundations, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass.
Office of Population Censuses and Surveys: 1980, Classification of Occupations, HMSO, London.
PeirceC. S.: 1931–58, Collected Papers, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass.
PiagetJ.: 1972, Psychology and Epistemology: Towards a Theory of Knowledge, Penguin, Harmondsworth.
PiagetJ.: 1995, Sociological Studies, Routledge, London.
SturrockJ.: 1979, Structuralism and Since: From Lévi-Strauss to Derrida, OUP, Oxford.
VygotskyL.: 1986, Thought and Language, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.
WalkerdineV. et al.: 1989, Counting Girls Out, Virago, London.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Dowling, P. A sociological analysis of school mathematics texts. Educational Studies in Mathematics 31, 389–415 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00369156
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00369156