An Archaeological Analysis of Numeracy Across the Curriculum in England
Numeracy across the curriculum is a fairly recent policy, with it first emerging Blair's Labour government, and then again more recently as a result of reform instigated by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government. In the National Curriculum In England Framework Document (Department for Education, 2014) it states the need for teachers to develop mathematical reasoning in every subject and for pupils to develop their fluency in every relevant subject. This, along with the inclusion of mathematics in several of the programmes of study in GCSE and A level has resulted in mathematics and numeracy becoming more predominant across the curriculum.
Yet, it isn't clear from the policy documents why these policies were put in place or where they came from, and what problems they are trying to address. What is also not clear, are who are the ones who have legitimised the policy, and why this policy was chosen over others.
To help answer questions around the origin of the policies and how they became legitimised as valid solutions, an archaeological analysis (Foucault, 1972) is used to uncover the discourses related to the policy problems and solutions relating to numeracy across the curriculum, as well as the actors who are involved in this policy. Particular attention is paid to those who have been 'disposed' of the policy and the rules and regulations that have permitted the policy to become a "taken for granted truth".
About the speakers
Amy O'Brien
Amy O'Brien is a Lecturer in Mathematics Education at King's College London and is coming to the end of her Ph.D. in Education on 'Discourses of Numeracy Across the Curriculum in England'. Her areas of interest include technology enhanced learning, quantitative methods in education research and the use of Foucauldian methods in discourse analysis, and she has taught on PGCE and MA programmes in the School of Education, Communication and Society.
Prior to coming to KCL, Amy had a career in teaching secondary school mathematics in England and held a post in an international school as head of mathematics until she left in 2016. She is also a Trustee for a local Multi-Academy Trust and has authored chapters in secondary mathematics textbooks and academic books, including the recent edition of Becoming a Teacher.
Sophie Perry
Sophie Perry recently completed her PhD at King’s College London, which explored counterhegemonic approaches to environmental education with young people in the context of ongoing socio-ecological crises through a lens of feminist poststructuralism. By adopting a multiple case study design which employed interviews and observations with young people and educators across three environmental education sites, Sophie’s work suggests both theoretical and practical implications for environmental education.
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