ML^2
Exploiting the Power of Multiple Languages for Mathematics Learning
The project aims to make learners’ multiple language into a resource for learning, and attempts to bring research findings showing the potentials of multiple languages for learning mathematics into practical mathematics teaching.
Project data
| Research lines | Research Line Domain-Specific Learning in Preschools and Schools, Research Line Professional Competence and Learning of Teachers | ||
| Departments | Knowledge Transfer | ||
| Funding | National Agency Erasmus+ (1/1/2022–12/31/2024) | ||
| Period | 1/1/2022–12/31/2024 | ||
| Status | completed | ||
| IPN researchers | Prof. Dr. Susanne Prediger (Project lead) | ||
| Members of the research alliance | IPN Leibniz-Institut für die Pädagogik der Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik (Lead), Eindhoven University of Technology, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences | ||
The ML2 project fills a very important demand in current school teaching and learning, namely to better accommodate the increasing linguistic diversity that exists in many mathematics classrooms today, particular in large cities. The project aims to make learners’ multiple language into a resource for learning, and as such, attempts to bring academic research showing the potentials of multiple languages for learning mathematics into the mathematics classroom in a practical way.
Research has for instance shown that speaking multiple languages has many benefits for learning mathematics, among them:
- Conceptual Understanding: When students can talk about mathematics in their home language, they have additional resources for meaning making in mathematics, such as connecting to their everyday experiences. As a result, students can gain a deeper conceptual understanding of mathematics.
- Identity and Agency: When students are encouraged to use their home languages for learning, they feel that their identity is relevant and is valued.
- World Citizenship: When students learn mathematics by connecting multiple languages, they develop their literacy in more than one language. This way they can become world citizens.
The ML2 project has the following objectives:
- To design and evaluate Open Educational Resources that engage learners in using their multiple languages to better understand central mathematical concepts (fractions, even numbers, variables,…), together with didactical guidelines for teachers to use these resources.
- To co-create Professional Development opportunities (PDs) with- and for teachers to develop their expertise to harness the potentials of their learners’ multiple languages in the mathematics classroom, by using the Open Educational Resources as starting point.
- To develop interactive guidelines and videos for teachers and teacher educators for how to practically utilize learners’ multiple languages for the learning and teaching of mathematics.
For further information visit: www.multilingualmath.nl
