Reading in Math Class¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 3 claims (2 for, 1 against) · 7 studies (3 causal, 2 quant-synthesis, 1 review, 1 theoretical), q1–q4 · 3 of 7 report an effect size

Description¶

Students read authentic published writing about mathematics — expository articles, essays, and columns from sources such as Math Horizons, Martin Gardner's Scientific American columns, or Quanta Magazine. Reading serves two functions: building comprehension of mathematical ideas as they are communicated in prose, and providing models of what effective mathematical writing looks like, which students can draw on when producing their own explanations and proofs.

Design Implications¶

Reading in math class treats mathematical communication as a discipline-specific literacy rather than a generic skill: the texts, conventions, and reading strategies of mathematics differ from those of narrative or general expository text, and explicit instruction in these differences improves comprehension Disciplinary literacy instruction improves comprehension. [+M]. Published articles also function as demonstrations — complete models of expert mathematical communication that students can study and imitate before writing themselves Example-based learning: integrating cognitive and social-cognitive research perspectives. [+M]. The strategy works best when reading is paired with structured response tasks (annotating, summarizing, critiquing) rather than left as passive consumption.

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Access to suitable articles at an appropriate difficulty level (Math Horizons, Gardner's columns, Quanta Magazine, MAA writing award winners)
• A purpose for reading: a guiding question, annotation task, or writing prompt — not just "read this"
• Instruction in how mathematical prose differs from other text (dense symbolic notation, definitions used precisely, theorem–proof structure)
• A follow-on production task where students apply what they observed in their own writing

Constraints¶

• Unstructured reading with no purpose or follow-up produces little durable learning; students skim or disengage [-M]
• Articles pitched above students' background knowledge cause overload; notation-heavy research-level texts are inaccessible without heavy scaffolding Cognitive overload degrades learning. [-S]
• Popular writing can trade rigor for accessibility — students may absorb informal or imprecise explanations as if they were rigorous ones [~M]
• Requires sustained access to suitable materials; one-off readings have negligible effect

Implementation Variability¶

• Model texts for writing instruction: students read award-winning expository writing, then imitate its structure in their own explanations
• Current mathematics: reading Quanta Magazine or MAA blog posts connects class topics to active research
• Historical readings: primary sources (e.g., excerpts from Euler) build context for how ideas developed
• Jigsaw reading: different students read different articles and teach each other, adding Collaborative Learning structure
• Choice reading: students select articles matching their interests, supporting autonomy and engagement Autonomy supports intrinsic motivation. [+M]

Target Learners¶

• Middle and high school students, and undergraduates in introductory or liberal-arts math courses
• Students who see math as pure computation and benefit from seeing it as a human, communicative activity
• Developing writers who need models before producing mathematical prose Example-based learning: integrating cognitive and social-cognitive research perspectives. [+M]
• Less suitable as-is for students still building basic reading fluency or core symbolic skills without substantial scaffolding

Target Learning Goals¶

• Disciplinary literacy: comprehending authentic mathematical prose and notation in context Disciplinary literacy instruction improves comprehension. [+M]
• Mathematical communication: writing clear explanations, summaries, and arguments
• Conceptual understanding: encountering ideas in multiple representations and registers
• Attitudes and identity: seeing mathematics as a living, cultural practice

Instructions¶

1. Select an article connected to current course content, checking that required background is in place (Assigned Readings).
2. Activate relevant prior knowledge with a brief preview of the article's central idea or a pre-reading question (Activation).
3. Have students read with a purpose, annotating claims, definitions, and moves they find effective (Annotating).
4. Model expert reading of a short excerpt aloud, verbalizing how you navigate notation and structure (Demonstration).
5. Discuss the article in class, focusing on both the mathematics and the writing craft (Class Discussion).
6. Assign a response task — summary, critique, or an imitation piece on a different topic — so reading feeds directly into writing (Application).

Related Strategies¶

• Writing in Math Class — the production counterpart; reading provides the models that writing instruction needs
• Current Events in Mathematics — a variant focused on research news rather than craft models

Related Elements¶

• Assigned Readings — the core mechanism for delivering the texts
• Annotating — gives reading an active structure and surfaces comprehension breakdowns
• Demonstration — the instructor modeling how to read mathematical prose
• Class Discussion — consolidates comprehension and surfaces multiple interpretations

Tools¶

• Math Horizons — MAA's expository magazine for undergraduates
• Quanta Magazine — accessible journalism on current mathematics research
• Martin Gardner, The Colossal Book of Mathematics — collected Scientific American columns
• MAA Writing Awards — prize-winning expository articles, freely available as models

Examples¶

• An introductory statistics course reads a Quanta Magazine article on a recent probability result, annotates how the author explains the counterintuitive idea to lay readers, then writes its own plain-language explanation of a theorem from class.
• A high school geometry class reads a Martin Gardner column on a dissection puzzle, then writes a proof of the result in the style of the column.

Key Sources¶

• Shanahan, T., & Shanahan, C. (2008). Teaching disciplinary literacy to adolescents: Rethinking content-area literacy. Harvard Educational Review, 78(1), 40–59. doi:10.17763/haer.78.1.v62444321p602101
• Graham, S., & Perin, D. (2007). A meta-analysis of writing instruction for adolescent students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(3), 445–476. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.99.3.445
• van Gog, T., & Rummel, N. (2010). Example-based learning: Integrating cognitive and social-cognitive research perspectives. Educational Psychology Review, 22(2), 155–174. doi:10.1007/s10648-010-9134-7
• Draper, R. J. (2002). Every mathematics teacher a reading teacher? Teaching and Teacher Education, 18(4), 437–447.