25/06/2020

'Mathematics is a condition of citizenship', Viana tells MyNews

Divulgação IMPA/ Foto: Tomás Rangel

Despite being perceived in the social imagination as frightening or a rare gift, mathematics should not be understood as a "luxury," but as a condition for fully exercising citizenship. This is what the director-general of IMPA, Marcelo Viana, stated in an interview given to the newspaper "Almoço da Quarentena ," on the YouTube channel MyNews, this Thursday (25). "Mathematics is a condition for the realization of citizenship. A person who buys a household appliance on credit and does not understand the concept of interest rates does not realize themselves as a citizen," he said. In the interview with journalists Mara Luquet and Myrian Clark, Viana spoke about the importance of the discipline in everyday life and its teaching in the country's basic education.

The imbalance between the performance of school mathematics in Brazil and the advanced research developed by leading national institutions in the field, such as IMPA, was one of the topics discussed in the conversation. According to Viana, a solution to this obstacle would be to improve teacher training. "The teacher is the main tool and the 'hero' in the battle of education. And unfortunately, there are several gaps and deficiencies in our teacher training programs."

Coordinated by the SBM (Brazilian Mathematical Society), the PROFMAT (Professional Master's Program in Mathematics in a National Network) was highlighted as an important ally for teacher training by the interviewee. "By offering a high-level master's degree for basic education teachers, PROFMAT contributes to the dialogue between schools and universities, which is still very limited in Brazil."

The theoretical teaching of mathematics, disconnected from the students' reality, is considered by the director-general of IMPA (Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics) to be the "Achilles' heel" of Brazilian education. "We know that young children really enjoy mathematics because they connect what they learn with reality, they count toys, compare slices of pizza. It's real mathematics for their experience. But throughout the school process, this connection is lost," the mathematician stated. Despite representing a huge challenge for teachers, this obstacle needs to be overcome. "Otherwise, we end up failing to train people who are able to use these tools in their daily lives," he concluded.

Journalist and economist specializing in finance and investments, Mara Luquet mentioned a personal experience to illustrate how connecting with reality facilitates the assimilation of content by children and young people. Faced with the challenge of giving a lecture on the distant topic of personal finance to a class at a public school in Rio de Janeiro, she wondered: "Am I going to talk about interest rates to these children?" She opted for a different approach. "When I realized that no one was paying attention, I decided to talk about arguments at home over debt." The interest was instantaneous. "In addition to contributing to the formation of young people as adults, so that they make better financial decisions in the future, this acts as a multiplier for the family," Mara pointed out. She cited Costa Rica as a positive example, where, she stated, there was a political decision to allocate Defense resources to education, which has transformed the country's reality in this area.

An effective change in the reality of Brazilian education requires a cultural process within the population, stated Viana. “Society needs to embrace the cause. But this means making choices that will have winners and losers.” The mathematician mentioned that countries that saw a 25-point increase in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) doubled their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). “In Brazil's case, a 25-point increase in PISA would mean reaching the level of Mexico. It's not a causal relationship. It's a correlation that indicates the added value of a country's educational system.”