Enseñanza de las Ciencias y la Matemática

Abstract

The following notes contain a series of personal observations on some regards of current mathematics education which, for several reasons that I will try to explain, are far from reaching a stage of stability. On the whole, it would seem that mathematics education, because of its very nature, as stated in SECTION 1, is bound to be one of those complicated subjects that must undergo constant revision. SECTION 2 presents several reflections on the transitional phase in which we find ourselves today, highlighting the fundamental reasons that drive us away from some of the less desirable channels that instruction in mathematics had recently entered. SECTION 3 is dedicated to pointing out the general trends which highlight the most remarkable work frames of current times. From these trends, on the one hand, are naturally derived some changes in the methodological principles that ought to guide contemporary teaching and learning, which are presented in SECTION 4, and on the other hand, changes in education content itself, in keeping with today's desired goals, as explained in SECTION 5. Finally, SECTION 6 presents a few projects that, in my opinion, would be desirable for our mathematics community to start developing, in order to achieve a healthier and more effective education. The bibliography at the end of this work refers to a few key articles whose extended bibliographies can be useful as a deeper source of information.