The Mathematics Edge in a Global Education

Mathematics may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of a culturally diverse subject, but the subject is rife with as many associations to Texas Instrument calculators and American Advanced Placement tests as it is to Kumon tutorial classes and Chinese gao kao examinations.

However, a rigorous mathematics curriculum is culturally relevant because it provides students with the skills to compete in the global workforce. Julie Many, who has taught mathematics at Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS Shanghai) for nine years, sees a substantial part of learning mathematics as having to do with logic and reasoning, which can be applied to any subject – across cultures and countries. “When students reach a level where they can reason in an abstract way and make sense, it opens up a quite a number of other things that make sense,” Ms. Many says.

One application Ms. Many points to is counting beats in music. Year 13 student, Misha Ulmet, who studies mathematics and music in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP), describes composing music on Mac computers as being “really mathematical.”  The result of students having a strong foundation in mathematics in this case speaks for itself: all YCIS Shanghai music students in Year 11 achieved either A* or A in the 2011 IGCSE examinations. One graduate even achieved a full mark of 7 on the 2011 IB music examination, a distinction accorded to only 3 out of 1051 candidates worldwide who sat the music examinations for the IB Diploma in 2010. 

For all the benefits of a strong mathematics background, parents are still reminded that the learning process itself is not a race.  Ms. Many agrees that certain students tend to do well at mathematics simply because their parents put a great deal of emphasis on the subject, but that emphasis may not necessarily give them a head start.

“Some students in primary school have mathematics tutors who are teaching them secondary level mathematics, but the catch is that it takes a lot longer to learn those concepts at an early age because the brain is not ready,” Ms. Many points out.  “If the child waits until secondary school, I can teach them the same concepts in one mathematics class.”

What is true is that a higher expectation, from family or from teachers, keeps students motivated throughout their education. “YCIS students develop self-discipline through the more traditional style of curriculum delivery that characterizes our school’s mandatory Chinese language classes,” observes Joe Holroyd, Head of English at YCIS Shanghai’s Gubei campus.  “This seems to spill over into their other classes and makes a great balance with the more exploratory, or ‘progressive,’ teaching and learning styles practiced in most other curriculum areas. The result is an extremely academic, high-achieving caliber of student.”

YCIS Shanghai’s Class of 2011 demonstrated an exceptional level of logic and reasoning skills that led to university acceptances to pursue majors in Information Management for Business, Architectural Design, Computer Science, and Engineering.

 “We teach students here, from a young age, to think outside the box. This ability allows students to transfer creativity and analysis in order to solve a wide range of problems in any type of job – including ones that haven’t been invented yet,” Ms. Many says. “Flexibility in thinking and integrating information is critical in working in teams where each individual brings different skills to the table to solve a problem – and these are all things mathematics students learn at YCIS Shanghai.”

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