It is with great pleasure that we present the following proceedings from the Seventh Conference on Research in Mathematics Education in Ireland (MEI 7), which took place in Dublin City University in October, 2019.
Our conference theme Mathematical Literacy, throughout and beyond education aims to foreground learners’engagement with mathematics at all stages of the education system, and their development of mathematical proficiency within and beyond formal classroom settings.
Mathematical literacy encompasses a learner’s proficiency to engage fluently with mathematical concepts, and to apply mathematical thinking in non-routine and novel situations. Mathematically literate children and adults recognise the mathematics in a situation, and understand how to mathematise a scenario in order to problem solve. Equally, mathematical literacy includes the capacity to interpret and analyse scenarios presented through mathematics. Mathematically literate individuals are thus less vulnerable to being convinced by inaccurate
interpretations of data and mathematics. A key aspect of mathematical literacy is fluency in expressing one’s mathematical thinking in a clear and convincing manner.
The notion of what it means to be mathematically literate is to a large extent dependent on the context in which mathematics is used. Some consider performance in examinations to be a determinant of the level of mathematical literacy. However, successfully completing daily activities and routines such as travelling and cooking all rely on fundamental mathematical literacy, for example, knowledge of distance, time, weight and temperature. For educators, mathematical literacy encompasses far more than an ability to do mathematics
oneself, but also to be able to ascertain where the learner is at in their mathematical understanding and to scaffold and extend that learning.
The education system in Ireland plays a key role in developing the mathematical literacy of all learners, to support full engagement with 21st century society. Central to such active citizenship is the propensity to apply mathematical concepts beyond the walls of the various classrooms where mathematics is taught; at primary, secondary and third levels. In these proceedings of MEI 7, we present papers that reflect a broad variety of mathematical research that is taking place in Ireland and further afield. Collectively, the authors seek to solidify and progress the research field of mathematics education, throughout and beyond Ireland.