Alice´s Creations in Wonderland: Mathematics Teachers Investigate Ethnic-Racial Relations

Abstract

This article is part of a broader research project that addresses the relationship between the teaching of mathematics and art, both in teacher training and in schools. Drawing from the viewpoints of French philosopher Gilles Deleuze, the study frames learning as experiential and meaningful, characterized by transversal and unpredictable pathways. Additionally, it highlights
art’s role as a catalyst for meaningful signs. Lewis Carroll´´  s book Alice in Wonderland was
used to shake up the traditional and overly mathematical teacher training. To achieve this,
mathematics educators, in both initial and continuous training, engaged in research to design workshops centered around themes related to logic and nonsense, the concept of time, the Industrial Revolution, the Victorian era, and ethnic-racial relations. This article focuses on the latter, that is, on issues related to racism, and for this purpose, the painting titled “Ham’s Redemption” was also incorporated into the study. The Experiment allowed linking the study of mathematics and logic with the paradoxes and racism that arose at the time Carroll wrote the book.