Linda Furuto, a professor of mathematics education at the University of 51²è¹Ý at ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹, started teaching ethnomathematics at 51²è¹Ý West Oʻahu in 2007.
She helped to develop the world¡¯s first academic program in ethnomathematics at the 51²è¹Ý ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ College of Education in 2018.
Recently, the sixth cohort of educators in that ethnomathematics graduate certificate program participated in service learning and math-related activities at the Hoʻokuaʻāina taro loʻi in Kailua, Oʻahu.
What is ethnomathematics?
Ethnomathematics is real-world problem solving that’s grounded in a sense of purpose and a sense of place. It empowers students by drawing on their strengths and the strengths of their communities through meaningful, relevant and contextualized applications of mathematics.
I think our responsibilities as educators and stewards and caretakers of Island Earth are to find ways to connect our classrooms to voyaging now with our students and voyaging into the future. I think we can do that by connecting our classrooms to the ecological, cultural, historical, political context in which schooling takes place.
What mathematical concepts were demonstrated at Hoʻokuaʻāina?
We used protractors to measure angles of elevation where we could figure out at what degree would certain types of liquids or substances repel or find connections to the taro leaf. ¡Our students found different connections to their land or their homes or their schools or communities. And then we had conversations when we met the next time about how kalo hydrophobicity and angles of elevation and declination and geometry and algebra were connected to our natural environment.
Do you think ethnomathematics will help students be more engaged?
We’ve seen through evidence based research and impact studies that ethnomathematics does make a difference. ¡We’ve seen how ethnomathematics can transform a university. For example, when I was a math professor at the University of 51²è¹Ý West–Oʻahu campus, we saw a 1400% increase in math enrollment. From the time I started in 2007, enrollment at 51²è¹Ý West Oʻahu was about 940 students, to the time I left in 2013, when enrollment at 51²è¹Ý West Oʻahu was about 2,300 students.
How many educators are part of the 51²è¹Ý ethnomathematics alumni network and how many countries does the network encompass?
More than 100 undergraduate STEM and pre-service educators and more than 200 P–20 public, public charter, and private school educators. The also includes partners and supporters, many of whom are based outside the U.S. Our students come from the U.S. and Canada.