UK professor explores meaning, values in elementary math in new book
A new book by University of Kentucky College of Education faculty member Jonathan Thomas explores how connecting elementary math to everyday human values can deepen student learning and engagement.
“For a long time, I have been concerned that mathematics teaching, especially at the elementary level, was less engaging than it could be,” said Thomas, Ed.D., professor of mathematics education and acting chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning.
Thomas’ interest in making math more meaningful was further shaped by a talk at UK by visiting mathematician Francis Su, Ph.D., a professor at Harvey Mudd College and former president of the Mathematics Association of America.
“That talk focused on connecting math to deep human pursuits, or virtues, like beauty, play and love,” Thomas said. “Soon after that visit, he published a book on the topic, and I devoured it. I then set out to write a book that would serve as a guide for elementary teachers looking to infuse their math lessons and classroom communities with truth, exploration, community and a host of other virtues that make life worth living and math worth doing.”
Beyond classroom strategies, he hopes the book, “Exploring Human Virtue in the Math Classroom: Teaching Practices for Student Flourishing in Grades K-5,” will spark broader conversations about the purpose of math education.
“I hope this gets teachers, principals, professors, parents and other folks that have a hand in children’s math experience talking about the deeper ‘why’ of this whole enterprise,” he said. “Why is math important? What is it really for?”
UK College of Education Dean Nicholas J. Pace, Ed.D., said Thomas’ work helps address a question many students bring to the classroom.
“I’m excited that Dr. Thomas is pushing the teaching of mathematics in a new direction,” Pace said. “Students often ask ‘Why are we doing this?’ and Dr. Thomas’ passion for improving math teaching helps answer that question and inspire better teaching and learning.”
A central theme of the book is expanding how educators define student success in mathematics. While traditional measures such as grades and test performance remain important, Thomas argues they do not tell the full story.
“Traditionally, success has been defined as performing well, getting good grades, doing well on tests, and taking higher level courses,” he said. “That’s certainly important, but I would like to expand that definition quite a bit.”
He encourages educators to also consider students’ emotional and intellectual engagement with the subject.
“How do students feel about math class? How engaged are they? Do they see it as useful, relevant or even fun?” he said. “We have so many young people who may perform well by traditional measures but still feel disconnected from math.”
In the book, Thomas describes how that disconnect can be addressed through approaches rooted in ideas such as play, meaning, exploration and beauty.
“In each chapter, I walk through different tasks and approaches for coordinating particular virtues with elementary math teaching, with the goal of making the experience more deeply connected to the human experience,” he said. “It comes back to the ‘why,’ why we do math and why it is worth our time and attention. If this book gets people talking along those lines, I will count it a success.”