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Project

Sabbatical Dirk De Bock: Modern mathematics: an international movement?

In 2019 I published, together with Professor Geert Vanpaemel, the monograph “Rods, sets and arrows. The rise and fall of modern mathematics in Belgium ”(https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030205980), a book described as an“ outstanding, landmark publication displaying the fruits of deep scholarship and careful research based on extensive analyzes of primary sources ”(Ellerton & Clements, 2019). During the requested Sabbath period, I wish to broaden and deepen the research reported in this book. To broaden my horizons, I will initially study the available research literature on the various aspects of the international modern mathematics movement of the 1960s and 1970s. I also wish to provide the scientific coordination of an international “edited book” on this subject. This book will feature contributions from top scientists from around the world and, like “Rods, set and arrows”, is intended to be included in the leading Springer book series “History of mathematics education” (https: //www.springer .com / series / 13545). In addition to coordinating an international publication project on the global modern mathematics movement, I naturally also want to publish on this topic myself (in particular on the early roots of this movement in Europe and on the role that Belgian mathematicians played in it). Reading, coordination and the further development of an international network will therefore be central in the first part of this sabbatical. In a second (parallel) section, deepening is central. Through further archival research, I want to further clarify and publish about the role of a number of important actors and events in the recent history of Belgian mathematics education.

Date:1 Feb 2021 →  31 Jul 2021
Keywords:modern mathematics, Belgian mathematicians, 1960-1970, History of mathematics education
Disciplines:History and biography of mathematical sciences