I absolutely love Jo Boaler’s pedagogy and she does not disappoint with this most recent book! She has a great way of outlining diverse thinking in mathematics and working to challenge ideas and feeling that many people have surrounding math and math education.

MATH-ISH by Jo Boaler (Limitless Mind) is a clear, straightforward, and user-friendly text on "Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics." Library Journal says, "Recommended for readers both fascinated by and leery of math. Educators who are looking for a different way to approach math will especially benefit from this title." I heartily concur. Boaler is a well-respected mathematician who is a professor of education and equity at Stanford University and the faculty director of youcubed. In MATH-ISH she offers practical, evidence-based ideas for finding the joy in math as well as improving understanding and performance. The book begins with a series of personal stories, gives examples of applying metacognitive thinking, and then continues with data like the following: "between 10 percent and 40 percent of people in most countries are innumerate and avoid math as much as possible. These folks are vulnerable every time they need to read a chart." She goes on to cite studies and to stress that "students with positive attitudes toward their learning achieved at higher levels. Positive attitudes reduce anxiety about learning, enhance motivation, and boost students’ persistence." Sadly, Boaler had to include a section which deals with the harassment which she and her family endured due to contrived controversy over the basic idea that "students are more interested and more successful when the content they are learning allows them to engage in different ways." In her final chapter she writes effectively about five principles for becoming an effective change agent: (1) believe in yourself; (2) practice empathy; (3) build a network; (4) investigate, collect and share data; and (5) develop a warrior mindset. Boaler references many scholars and includes extensive notes, making up at least fifteen percent of the text. Attitudes towards math and aptitude for math is a highly relevant topic, given the decline in scores related to COVID's impact and the debate over which students should take algebra in middle school. MATH-ISH is highly recommended.

“…the most productive times for our brains are when we are struggling and making mistakes”.

I first heard of Jo Boiler about eight years or so ago when her videos about mindset and creating a math community were on YouCubed. I used those videos to set up my math class’s community agreements.

In Mathish, Boaler makes the case for a change in the way that we teach mathematics to children. The typical way mathematics is taught is devoid of diversity - it’s dependent on formulas and procedures and only one “right” answer. In Mathish, Boaler stresses the value of struggle and of math diversity and “ish” - concepts she explains in the book.

The takeaway I got from this book is that we need to step away from teaching math as it has been in the texts. We need to give our students challenges and allow them to work on these challenges before we even begin to talk about them. Allow them to have a productive struggle and work in teams prior to us jumping in and “saving” them with a lesson. There is value in making mistakes and we should envelop our students’ thinking around that concept early and often.

I would recommend this book to parents, teachers, high schoolers who can read an analyze the text or just anyone wanting to know more about math and growth mindsets.

I received a copy of this Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) via NetGalley thanks to HarperOne.

Math-ish is a well reasoned evaluation of math learning and new ways to *think* about math education and how people learn, by Dr. Jo Boaler. Released 7th May 2024 by Harper Collins on their HarperOne imprint, it's 304 pages (print version) and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links.

The author has a long career in education and presents her experiences showing the differences in results for students who succeed and those who struggle. Many educational teaching methods haven't changed a whole lot in hundreds of years. Outdated methods are slowly being replaced but change has been slow and often ineffective. Currently mathematics classes are being stripped to the bare minimum due to funding cuts as well as a lack of qualified and engaged teachers. All of this has led to a significant decrease in mathematics competency for students in all stages of education.

Additionally, the lack of diverse tailored methods has led directly to a lack of diversity. The past modality for teaching mathematics has proven inadequate for our current educational needs. The author makes a very good points for individual structure and creativity in mathematics education to reach more students of all backgrounds and actually *teach* them, helping them build their own problem solving tools instead of just using cookie-cutter tests to "cram - test - forget". The author also covers assessment methodology and feedback for reinforcing learning and helping students retain the skills they've acquired.

The text is well annotated throughout and the chapter notes will provide readers with a wealth of further sources. It's layman accessible, but information dense and a niche subject (but of course STEM education and competency are absolutely vital to our continued existence on the planet).

Four and a half stars. Definitely a good choice for public and school library acquisition, educators, and others involved in teaching mathematics.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.