Centre for Research in Science Education and Communication (FNUG) is delighted to invite you to a special film screening. Join us for an engaging and thought-provoking evening as we present the film "Why Do Societies Teach Everyone Mathematics?" This event will feature an introduction by our esteemed adjunct professor, Keith Devlin, who not only plays a small role in the film but also significantly contributed to its creation.
This event promises to be both insightful and enjoyable, complete with popcorn! Don’t miss this opportunity to delve into the global issues surrounding mathematics education and its societal impacts.
Keith Devlin shares his thoughts on the film:
“Why Do Societies Teach Everyone Mathematics? That’s the framing question that shaped Counted Out, a cinema-released documentary film that was at least six years in the making and had premiere screenings in San Francisco and Los Angeles last month. Its overt focus is US mathematics education at both the K-12 level and adult education, but the issues are global. It is the third film by director Vicki Abeles (who lives just outside Berkeley, CA) that looks at mathematics education. Her first one, Race to Nowhere, focused on the insanely competitive Bay Area education system, and got a lot of attention, particularly in California. For this one, she assembled a stellar team of filmmakers from the Hollywood and the New York movie industries.
Counted Out, as it is now titled, originally set out to include a deeper dive into mathematics than her previous two films. In 2018-19 they filmed lots of stuff with mathematicians (I was one such), but as it progressed the attention shifted to the questions of “Why are we teaching everyone mathematics, and are we doing it the best way?” This was the period when PISA was working on what became PISA 2022 framework and California was working on its new state Mathematics Framework. And both were in the news. A lot.
When the CMF came out in 2023, it turned out to be a near isomorphism to PISA 2022. In particular, building society was the clear main goal. Not a traumatic choice for the Nordic nations, who collectively occupy the top slots in the world rankings of successful societies, but hugely divisive for California, which continues to profit handsomely from an education system designed in the 1950s to fight the Cold War, and which continued to keep CA as the world’s fifth largest economy (albeit with a STEM force imported from around the world and a huge, poorly educated underclass).
So, in the end, the film’s somewhat deeper dives into math were cut in favor of the societal issues that it ended up focusing on. It’s a powerful statement, aimed at provoking change in the US. My ongoing involvement was as one of many advisors from around the world, commenting on various versions of the film.”
We look forward to seeing you at Centre for Research in Science Education and Communication (FNUG)!
This event promises to be both insightful and enjoyable, complete with popcorn! Don’t miss this opportunity to delve into the global issues surrounding mathematics education and its societal impacts.
Keith Devlin shares his thoughts on the film:
“Why Do Societies Teach Everyone Mathematics? That’s the framing question that shaped Counted Out, a cinema-released documentary film that was at least six years in the making and had premiere screenings in San Francisco and Los Angeles last month. Its overt focus is US mathematics education at both the K-12 level and adult education, but the issues are global. It is the third film by director Vicki Abeles (who lives just outside Berkeley, CA) that looks at mathematics education. Her first one, Race to Nowhere, focused on the insanely competitive Bay Area education system, and got a lot of attention, particularly in California. For this one, she assembled a stellar team of filmmakers from the Hollywood and the New York movie industries.
Counted Out, as it is now titled, originally set out to include a deeper dive into mathematics than her previous two films. In 2018-19 they filmed lots of stuff with mathematicians (I was one such), but as it progressed the attention shifted to the questions of “Why are we teaching everyone mathematics, and are we doing it the best way?” This was the period when PISA was working on what became PISA 2022 framework and California was working on its new state Mathematics Framework. And both were in the news. A lot.
When the CMF came out in 2023, it turned out to be a near isomorphism to PISA 2022. In particular, building society was the clear main goal. Not a traumatic choice for the Nordic nations, who collectively occupy the top slots in the world rankings of successful societies, but hugely divisive for California, which continues to profit handsomely from an education system designed in the 1950s to fight the Cold War, and which continued to keep CA as the world’s fifth largest economy (albeit with a STEM force imported from around the world and a huge, poorly educated underclass).
So, in the end, the film’s somewhat deeper dives into math were cut in favor of the societal issues that it ended up focusing on. It’s a powerful statement, aimed at provoking change in the US. My ongoing involvement was as one of many advisors from around the world, commenting on various versions of the film.”
We look forward to seeing you at Centre for Research in Science Education and Communication (FNUG)!
- Organizer: Centre for Research in Science Education and Communication (FNUG)
- Address: Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense M
- Contact Email: mwhs@imada.sdu.dk
- The film is shown in V6-601a-2: https://clients.mapsindoors.com/sdu/573f26e4bc1f571b08094312/details/563cb981423b7d0540c9a7b9
- Add to your calendar: https://eom.sdu.dk:443/events/ical/bf6cae2e-3048-450e-9e6f-783af38b91fa