Whose Ethics? Toward ClarifyingEthicsin Mathematics Education Research

Abstract

The philosophical branch of ethics is foundationally concerned with the question of right or wrong, benevolent or harmful, and ultimately what is proper conduct. The present inquiry addresses two related questions: (1) How have theories of ethics been applied to mathematics education research? and (2) What alternatives have not been considered? What might the implications be if these alternative formulations were considered? To answer the first question, I offer a review of the philosophy of mathematics education literature, considering those articles which discuss ethics and mathematics education together. The ethical perspectives adopted within the literature span normative and non-normative, modern and postmodern orientations towards ethics. To answer the second question, I explored philosophy literature to identify which philosophical perspectives of ethics have (not) been adopted by philosophers of mathematics education research. The structure of this paper parallels these two questions: the first part considers the philosophy of mathematics education research and how researchers have defined ethics while the second part discusses additional philosophical approaches to ethics and puts those approaches into conversation with those identified in part one. I conclude by intertwining these two strands into my central thesis: ethics per se is construed too narrowly in the philosophy of mathematics education literature and considering additional ethical perspectives from philosophy can be generative of new ideas.

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