Cultural Identity Promoting Pre-Service Math Educators in Israel

In this research we study possibilities to enhance motivation of math teacher students by relating to their cultural background. The study was carried out in a college in Israel, where students of mainly Jewish and Arabic backgrounds joined a seminar during their last year of studies. Flexibility in the choice of seminar topics made it possible to connect between math and culture. We will show that a culturally-enriched view of mathematics enhances the manner in which future math teachers see mathematics and boosts their motivation. To address our research questions, we distributed questionnaires and collected mind-maps. We also started a pilot of interviewing students and reviewing math books in the Hebrew and Arabic languages. Mind maps revealed that at the end of the seminar, more students were aware of the many aspects of our lives to which math are relevant. In text books in both languages, there are some references made to cultural symbols or objects (such as garments, tents, or the star of David), but the only historical references are those to Greeks. The interviews, particularly, revealed that putting math into the social context of the student has a very strong positive impact on motivation. The interview participants demonstrated an awareness of the relationship between their own culture and math, but less awareness of the relationship between other cultures and math. Therefore, lecturers should not miss opportunities to show the rich breeding ground offered by the many cultures which have fostered the development of mathematics in the past and wherein they continue to evolve today.