Reconsidering Mathematical Authority (Journal Article)

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Abstract: Recently, we have been exploring what it means to have mathematical authority in mathematics classrooms. We view mathematical authority as a dynamic and negotiated relationship between people, where one person (or party) agrees to lead and another agrees to follow within a mathematical situation (Bishop et al., 2022). For us, mathematical authority is rooted in the activities within a classroom that contribute directly to the mathematics, as well as who gets to partake in those activities. Referring to the scenario given at the beginning, mathematical authority is present in decisions about how to solve a given problem, who communicates mathematical ideas and solutions publicly, and who decides whether a solution is valid, efficient, or correct.