Broadening curriculum means making "curriculum decisions that accommodate a wide variety of learning styles, backgrounds, and interests" (Sutton & Krueger, 2002, p. 43). Such decision making is normally affected by both the content and the instructional strategies envisioned in national and state standards. In order to implement and achieve the rigor of standards-based curricula, classroom practice must change (Sutton & Krueger, 2002, p. 45). The most recent emphasis has been on programs that encourage students to develop their skills through problem solving, games, real-world situations, and the like. Effective mathematics curriculum should focus on mathematics that "prepare students for continued study and for solving problems in a variety of school, home, and work settings," and science curriculum should emphasize science that ensures high school graduates will become scientifically literate adults (Sutton & Krueger, 2002, p. 48; Krueger & Sutton, 2001).
Equity in mathematics and science curricula should be reflected in all three aspects: content, classroom activities, and teacher's program (Wallace, 1997). In an ideal setting, mathematics and science teachers provide equitable learning opportunities to their students by doing the following (Wallace, 1997; Hoyle, 1994):
Because the subjects of mathematics and science are so multifaceted, merely knowing the content to pass an assessment test cannot be sufficient for any student. The development of mathematics and science knowledge and competency involves knowing, doing, and talking science and mathematics (Lee & Fradd, 1996). Talking should be emphasized especially: "It is the use of language and, in particular, pupil talk that will enable both teacher and learner to negotiate their way through the acquisition of new ideas and the associated terminology" (Hoyle, 1994, p. 153). Teachers can use real-life problem-solving concepts in the classroom by finding out if and how students have used those concepts in everyday life, recognizing that use varies across and within cultures. For example, the teacher could give students several problem situations involving fractions without teaching the students how to represent fractions. The students' discussion using their natural language and their attempts to solve the problems would reveal their prior knowledge and use of the concept as a tool and set the stage for mathematical representation of the concept.
Classroom activities should involve a variety of instructional methods, such as encouraging, challenging, and involving underrepresented students, addressing their different learning styles, and creating physical classroom environments conducive to multicultural learning (Sutton & Krueger, 2002). Placement practices also must be scrutinized to address any existing biases or ideological incohesiveness (Roy, 2000). Eliminating tracking, increasing course requirements, and changing course of content sequence may help in reducing such biases that prevent minorities from receiving high-quality education (Murphy, 1996; Yerrick & Ross, 2001). "Equity will not be achieved if a disproportionate number of minorities remain unexposed to higher level curriculum" (Roy, 2000, p. 41). Student subgroup achievement patterns often are connected to enrollment and instructional strategies. Low-socioeconomic status students and those of color, for example, are half as likely to take higher level mathematics courses as higher socioeconomic status white students (Sutton & Krueger, 2002).
Return to "Remembering the Child: On Equity and Inclusion in Mathematics and Science Classrooms."
