Misconceptions about gender-based talent harm everyone, not just girls

By Shelby Rehberger

Professor Jo Boaler wrote “The Elephant in the Classroom” about children’s performance on standardized math exams in the UK. She suggests that the elephant in the classroom is the pervasive idea that the ability to understand mathematics is something you either have or you don’t. It’s assumed that kids can either do math or they can’t, and if they can’t then there’s no way to change that. Boaler goes on in her book to describe ways to shoo the proverbial elephant out of our classrooms and bring back active, participatory learning.

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