Why the World Needs More Math Outreach in Spanish
By: Jeanette Shakalli and Rachel Levy, MAA Deputy Executive Director, @mathcirque
Mathematical outreach efforts seek to promote positive attitudes towards mathematics and to create awareness of mathematical culture by fostering an understanding of the essential role that mathematics plays in our everyday lives. Outreach efforts also highlight the enjoyable experience of learning mathematics.
By studying mathematics, we develop skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, and perseverance, which are the basic abilities that most employers seek nowadays. Consequently, it is important that mathematical outreach efforts are also directed towards increasing appreciation for mathematics among the underrepresented groups in education. Spanish is the most popular second language learned in the United States. Moreover, Spanish is the world’s second most spoken native language. More than 450 million people speak Spanish as their native language. Therefore, mathematical outreach efforts in Spanish are fundamental to give these underrepresented groups an opportunity to achieve their maximum potential in society.
Parents and teachers of bilingual children in the United States sometimes find that English becomes the default language of mathematics. More access to mathematics content in Spanish means they can have richer mathematical conversations in both languages, including online resources that answer the great questions kids ask, such as “what happens when you divide by zero?”
The Panamanian Foundation for the Promotion of Mathematics (FUNDAPROMAT) is a private non-profit foundation that was established to promote the study of mathematics in the Republic of Panama. Through various outreach events and presentations open to the general public given by prominent mathematicians, the Foundation wants to convince the Panamanian population that mathematics is not only fun but it also has many interesting applications. Furthermore, FUNDAPROMAT’s efforts seek to inspire Panamanian youth to study math or follow a career in STEM.
During these unexpected times of COVID-19, we have all been demanded to become more creative and innovative than ever. For this reason, FUNDAPROMAT’s mathematical outreach efforts are now virtual events. These events are free and open to the general public so that kids and adults of all ages who speak Spanish can rejoice in the beauty of mathematics. The Foundation’s firm belief that mathematics is for everyone is aligned with the core MAA value of inclusivity.
So far FUNDAPROMAT has organized more than 55 virtual events, including Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival Webinars, Rubik’s Cube Webinars, Virtual Origami Classes, Webinars on COVID-19, Virtual Encounters with Outstanding Mathematicians, and many more. Some of the most attended virtual events were “Math and Magic,” “How Math is Used in the Battle Against COVID-19,” “Math and Games of Ingenuity,” “The Game of SET,” “Math and Probability Games,” “The Mathematics of Secrets,” “Latin Music and Math,” and “Math and Attempted Attacks on Intuition.” The invited speakers are experts from different countries including Panama, Costa Rica, Argentina, Spain, United States, Colombia and many more. Some of the Foundation’s invited speakers have been Adrian Paenza, Adriana Salerno, Eduardo Saenz de Cabezon, Julia Plavnik, Tiago Hirth, Alicia Prieto Langarica, and Federico Ardila.
The second core MAA value is community. Even though the initial purpose of FUNDAPROMAT was aimed at impacting the Panamanian population, the Foundation is building an international community of people who appreciate the fundamental role that mathematics plays in our culture and in our society. FUNDAPROMAT currently has a database of more than 7,000 people who have participated in the Foundation’s math outreach events. The attendees are from Panama, Argentina, Spain, Portugal, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, United States, Venezuela, Bolivia, and many other countries who are interested in learning more about the richness of mathematics.
Communication, another of the core MAA values, is key for any program to succeed. Not only do the Foundation’s virtual events communicate mathematics in a fun and engaging way but FUNDAPROMAT also provides a questionnaire at the end of every event to get feedback from the audience so that their programs can keep improving. Furthermore, the Foundation’s social media presence allows them to constantly be in contact with the international community that speaks Spanish.
FUNDAPROMAT’s efforts are also oriented towards teaching and learning, the fourth core MAA value. The Foundation’s virtual events focus on showing mathematics in a different light and many of the attendees are teachers who enjoy the way FUNDAPROMAT’s outreach efforts present mathematics to a general audience. Several of them have asked the Foundation for permission to use FUNDAPROMAT’s materials in their classrooms. The Foundation allows this request with the sole condition that FUNDAPROMAT is mentioned as their source.
You can find out more about the virtual events organized by FUNDAPROMAT on their website https://www.fundapromat.org/en or on social media: Instagram @fundapromat and Facebook. You can also email the Foundation directly at info@fundapromat.org.