Mathematics Curriculum Policies: A Framework with Case Studies from Japan, Korea, and Singapore

Abstract

Mathematics curriculum policy (MCP) can be differentiated from mathematics curriculum by the former’s focus on the objectives of mathematics education and practices implemented at different systemic levels by different groups of stake-holders to bring about those objectives, whereas the latter covers mostly mathematics curriculum standards, resource materials, and teaching strategies. Not much has been written about MCP in different education systems. In this chapter, we attempt to fill this “gap” by proposing a framework to cover four aspects of MCP: (a) policies about mathematics curriculum, the “what”? (b) agents who are engaged in policy-making, the “who”? (c) factors that influence the design of MCP within a particular “environment”, and (d) future directions of MCP. We will illustrate these four aspects by citing our experiences with MCP in three Asian countries, namely, Japan, Korea, and Singapore. Further research in mathematics curriculum policy can be stimulated through in-depth descriptions of intra-national experiences of policy formulation and implementation and inter-national analyses of similar experiences.