Mathematics Education Research Journal, Vol. 4, No. 3, 1992.

MATHEMATICAL ATTITUDE DEVELOPMENT

FROM A VYGOTSKIAN PERSPECTIVE
Lyn Taylor, University of Colorado - Denver
An analysis of mathematical life history interviews,
Vygotsky's developmental theories, and research on attitudes
toward mathematics, guided the creation of the attitudinal
modelpresented in thispaper. Examination and interpretation
of the life histories of a sample of mathematics professors
confirmed the model's utility and the importance of four
'bridging' experiences: signficant
interactions with materials,
i
mentoring experiences, significant peer interactions,
and
negative experiences. Impli cations of the model for
curriculum planningand development are also explored.
It may strike many as ironic that Vygotsky's ideas should
appear so fruitful to many people removed from him by time,
space, and political system. Instead of viewing this as
paradoxical, however, it should perhaps be seen as a
straightforward example of how human genius can transcend
historical, social, and cultural barriers. (Wertsch, 1985b,
p.231)
Vygotsky's psychological ideas have increasingly influenced work
in several academic disciplines in -the ~Westernworld (Wertsch, 1988).
His emphasis on cultural influences in learning provides a broad
conceptual framework that challenges us to examine the learning and
teaching of mathematics in general, and mathematical attitude
development specifically, in a new way. This interactionist framework
takes us beyond a strictly psychological focus and enables us to
expand present knowledge. Vygotsky's (1962, 1978; Richer & Carton,
1987) comprehensive theory of intellectual development can inform
development.
both
cognitive and affective
This article discusses mathematical attitudes from a Vygotskian
interactionist perspective and presents a unique working model concerning
mathematical attitudes. The model emerged from mathematical life history
research (Taylor, 1988, 1991). It is linked to Vygotsky`s psychological
constructs, particularly the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) and
current mathematics education research, Finally, the educational
implications of the working model for future mathematics education

A Vygotskian Perspective 9
research and its connections to the National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics (NCTM) Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School
Mathematics (1989; hereafter referred to as the Standards) and the
Professional Standards for Teaching Mathematics (1991; hereafter referred
to as the Professional Standards~ )are discussed.

A Vygotskian Conceptual Framework

Vygotsky's theories have increasingly influenced academic thought
in North America. At the 1989 American Educational Research
Association (AERA) Annual Meeting four sessions focused on
Vygotskian theories. While most Vygotskian studies have been in
linguistics, languages, and psychology, some influence has been
demonstrated in mathematics education (See Ernest, 1991; Rachlin,
1989; Schmittau, 1991; Taylor, 1988, 1991; Thornton, 1989).
Recently, Ilearned that some of Vygotskys influence in mathematics
education has gone unrecognized and unreported. Vygotsky's (1962)
discussion of problem solving experiments with blocks influenced Bill
Hull to develop A ttribute Blocks (Rasmussen, 1992). Vygotsky and
his contemporary, Sakharov, used blocks of various shapes, sizes, and
colors in experiments exploring concept formation during the 1930's
(for further information see Chapter 5 in Thought and Language and in
The Collected
Works
of Vygotsky ).
Vygotsky`s (1962, 1978; Richer & Carton,1987) interactionist
theories can be very helpful in examining mathematical life histories and
attitude development. I believe his theory will help us go beyond our
present knowledge concerning attitudes toward mathematics.
Vygotsky, the ZPD, and Role Models
Teachers are widely accepted as role models who influence their
students' development. This is not a new idea. In the 1930's Vygotsky was
concerned with the development of students working with adults andfor
more capable peers. In this zone of proximal development (ZPD) a
learner, although not capable of solving problems independently, can do so
with help from others. The following excerpt describes his zone of
proximal development:
When it was first shown that the capability of children with
equal levels of mental development to learn under a teacher's
guidance varied to a high degree, it became apparent that
those children were not mentally the same age and
that the subsequent course of their learning would
obviously be different. This difference between twelve
and eight, or between nine and eight, is what we call the
zone of proximal development.
It is the distance
between the actual developmental level as determined

through independent

10 Taylor
problem solving and the level of potential development as
determined through problem solving under adult guidance or
in collaboration with more capable peers. (Vygotsky,1978, p,
86)
In concert with the maturation process, teachers can facilitate
students' bridging their zones of proximal development by providing
meaningful learning experiences. Adults may shape the child's experiences
and help them to internalize thoughts. Brown and Ferrara (1985) believe
" by interacting with an adult, who guides problem solving activity and
structures the learning environment, the child gradually comes to adopt
structuring and regulatory activities of his own" (p.278). They are also
concerned that students who come from disadvantaged homes have a lack
of consistent learning in their early developmental histories. " Interactive
styles of continually questioning and extending the limits of knowledge are
typical of middle class social interaction patterns and may even be alien to
some cultures" (p.278).
Vygotsky argues " all higher psychological processes are originally
social processes, shared between people, particularly between children and
adults" (Brown & Ferrara, 1985, p.281). First the child experiences active
problem solving with others; then s/he gradually functions independently
and internalizes the concept. Initially an " adult or knowledgeable peer
controls and guides the child's activity" (p.281). And then " gradually the
adult and the child come to share the problem solving functions, with the
child taking the initiative and the adult correcting and guiding when she
falters . Finally the adult cedes control to the child and functions primarily
as a supportive and sympathetic audience" (pp,281-2).
A zone of proximal development can exist between concrete and
abstract thought. Often the student needs help to reach a level of abstract
thought. A significant teacher can facilitate " what is intrinsically lacking
in their own [the students']development" (Vygotsky,1978, p. 89).
Vygotsky also spoke of students having significant interactions with
materials; these interactions could also facilitate a student bridging his
ZPD to reach a heightened state of understanding

Extending the ZPD

When Vygotsky developed his construct of the ZPD in the 1930's, he
specifically applied it to children's cognitivedevelopment " between twelve
and eight, or between -nine and eight" (1978, p, 86), It appears these age
boundaries are not as rigid as Vygotsky originally proposed. Rachlin
(1986) has used this construct in research with high school students,
Thornton (1989) has applied it to early elementary math students, and
others have applied it to adult development (Wertsch, 1985a). Literature
on mentoring (Levinson, 1978; Bova & Phillips, 1984) reveals that
mentors have often facilitated adult development. I posit that the ZPD
construct can be applied to the childhood and early adult development of

A Vygotskian Perspective 11
the participants in my study. As a result of significant mentoring
experiences during graduate school, all the professors developed a metaawareness of. their knowledge. They were able to think about their
thinking process, reflect on the influence of their environment, and to
extend their knowledge about mathematics, enabling them to engage in
problem solving at higher conceptual levels, thereby bridging their ZPD's.
The professional development of each participant in my study was
significantly affected by a relationship with one or more mentors. These
mentors facilitated the bridging of each individual's zone of proximal
development thereby maximizing the cognitive potential and affective
awareness of each participant. They all.developed positive attitudes
toward mathematics. Of the participating professors: eight are in
mathematics while four are social scientists; six are women and six are
men; and nine are Anglos, while three are of minority ethnicity;
Chicana, American Indian, and Black. All twelve professors are known
for being excellent classroom teachers.

Attitude Development
Researchers have directed much attention toward the study of the
affective domain and the role it plays in persons' learning and persistence
with mathematics (Fennema,1989; Fennema & Sherman, 1976; Reyes,
1984). It is likely that a positive mathematical attitude will be related to
an individual's self-esteem as well as to his/her pursuit of
mathematical coursework (Sells, 1974). A student's attitude can
influence how s/he regards himself as a learner in the classroom
(Fennema, 1981; Fennema & Sherman, 1976; Leder, 1991).
Defining A ttitudes Toward Mathematics
At the 1987 Research Pre-session to the National Council of
Teachers of Mathematics Annual Meeting concern was expressed by
Reyes that in describing the affective domain researchers must be
careful to define their terms and say what they mean; too often
psychologists, mathematics educators examining problem solving,
and mathematics educators studying attitudes toward mathematics are not
doing this, Reyes said that " these three groups of people seemed to be
using the same terms to mean different things and different terms to mean
the same thing" (p. 2),
Before further discussion, it is important to define attitude. In this
article attitude is defined as a " way of thinking, acting, or feeling" that
affects development (Thorndike & Bamhart, 1968). This is a broad
definition whi.ch, I believe, goes beyond most definitions of attitude.
With this definition affect becomes only one part of an attitude. There
are also cognitive and behavioural components. This comprehensive
view of attitude is helpful ~in understanding the development of
attitudes toward mathematics.

12 Taylor
Mathematical A ttitudes
The formation of a mathematical attitude is a complex process
involving the interaction of many factors. It cannot be explained simply
or completely. Among the factors influencing attitude development are
the family, socialization, schooling experiences, and relationships with
role models and mentors (see Taylor, 1988 for further discussion).
The view of attitudes as a complex construct is in line with the
psychological view (Rajecki, 1990) and that of the Standards (1989), as
well as mathematics educators Reyes (1984) and Fennema (1989). It goes
beyond the simplistic unidimensional view of mathematical attitudes as
just the liking or disliking of mathematics.
Reyes (1987) has criticized this limited view saying:
During the 1960's and early 1970's, mathematics educators'
interest in the affective domain was usually limited to what
was called 'attitude toward mathematics.' The paper-andpencil scales developed at this time were overall,
unidim.ensional scales to measure degree of liking/disliking of
mathematics. (p~.I)

Recent research has also transcended this simplistic view. The

Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scales (1976) are
multidimensional and designed to measure specific attitude components.
Specif ically the eight twelve-item scales are designed to measure:
usefulness of mathematics; attitudes of mother, father, teacher;
mathematics anxiety; confidence in learning mathematics; attitude
toward success in mathematics; and effectance motivation in
mathematics,
My model and research also go beyond the unidimensional view of
attitudes in examining participants' lives to find out what factors influenced
the development of their positive attitudes toward mathematics. At times
attitudes toward mathematics focus primarily on feelings, while at ~ other
times they focused more on thoughts or actions. While the focus is more
toward one of the areas, the other components still influence attitude
development. For example, sometimes attitudes are most influenced ,by
mathematical thoughts; however, even though feelings and actions (both
past and present) were minimized, they still affect attitudes.

Model Presentation
The analysis of mathematical life history interviews, Vygotsky's
developmental theories, and mathematical attitude research (particularly
Fennema and Reyes), guided the creation of the attitudinal model which is
presented in this article, The model is linked to Vygotsky's psychological
constructs, particularly the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). It was
also influenced by: the developmental theories of Bandura (1977),

A Vygotskian Perspective 13
particularly his model of Reciprocal Determinism; Bruners (1960) work
e-~mphasizing process; Gardner's (1983) theory of -multiple intelligences;
and Paperts (1980) cal com with the culture of learning mathematics.
~
These
theories provide the conceptual framework to support the model.
Specifically, they support (either directly or tangentially) the idea that
students' attitudes develop when they interact with other persons and their
~environment.
Since an attitude is defined as a way of thinking, feeling, and acting,
I have chosen to locate a person's attitude within a circle. This attitude is
affected by all three components; therefore, the double arrows are needed
to show the complex interactions. Since a person's actions, thoughts and
feelings affect his/her attitudes, it is necessary that the arrows go back to
attitudes (see Figure I),

Thinking |~ATTITUDE"q[

- | Acting

. '
`- - `
"MFeeling

Figure 1, Attitude defined,

Next, in accordance with Vygotsky's emphasis on the importance of
the environment, the culture and other persons within ,the environment are
depicted surrounding and affecting attitudes. A person's attitude
(including feelings, thoughts, and actions) is affected by his/her
'
environment,
This Includes experiences within the environment as well
as the culture of the environment itself. Other persons are also a part of
Figure
2).
the
environment
(see
This cultural concern of not extending knowledge is exemplified in
Luria's study of Russian peasants who had difficulty solving problems
because they were not related to their culture and experiences, They did
not have the necessary verbal and thinking skills to move beyond their
immediate experience. However, their frequent use of the pronoun " we"
indicated that they engaged in shared learning (Belenky, Clinchy,
Goldberger & Tarule, 1986), Learning, both individual and shared, is
immersed in and affected by one's culture.
This model emphasizes the larger cultural context within which an
individual's development occurs, first on a social level, between people,
then on an individual level as internalization occurs (Rogoff & Wertsch,

14 Taylor
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moo-

A Vygotskian Perspective 15
1984). The model further illustrates the inter psychological (between
logical lwltnln me mSlvlsual) planes of t
'gotsk
. q (1978) and Wertsch (1988) discuss.
_-~- ,.
The next addition -to the working model adds the ZPD above the
pe~rsons attitude toward mathematics (Figure 3). The model also depicts
the
~ ~~ meta-awareness an individual develops when s/he bridges his/her ZPD.
Significant
interactions serve as bridging experiences. Meta-awareness
~
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'~ reflecting on one's thoughts, feelings, and actions.
~
In the last representation of the model (Figure 4) arrows are added
troy
~
meta-awareness
oacK sown to attitude. This is done to represent the
.- m~
continual interactions that people experience, Therefore, an individual can
repeatedly orlsge nlslner LrJD to a meta-awa.'eness state and then have an
attitude that is further develop?ed. For an individual, this means that his/her
t
atitude
toward mathematics, including feelinggs, thoughts, and actions,
has changed.

META-AWAREN.ESS

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......... .
.-" .."'
.
~,.."'
,.........:OTH
ER::p,EOj|
"`'-.,,,
""

...........
':.-:.' :.' :.:.' :.:. ..:.:.:..
.....
. ,....-............,....,
.,.,..-.-............,...,.,.,.......,.,.,.,....,.-.,.,...,.......,...........,...
-..-..,.,.,...,
...,.,...,.,.,.,...,.....,.,...,..,.,-.,.-.,.-......,.,....................,.,.
.,....... ... .. .. .- - - .,.,., ,.,.... . . ..,.,.,.,.-...,.........,

are 4. A Mathematical Attitude Model depictilDig bridging the

Zone of Proximal Devel, ment, meta-awareness, the
components of an attitude,
d factors influen-cing - - aititude
development,

16 Taylor
Connecting the Model with Life History Experiences
My research utilized the life history interview as a tool to discover
significant events in the lives of twelve professors known for be~-ing
outstanding teachers. During the analysis of these interviews themes and
patterns emerged.
Analyzing the participants' perceptions helps us to understand how
responses can influence learning and development. This further provides
the practical and theoretical context for exploring mathematical attitudes,
their influence on learning, my working attitudinal model, and the
Standards (1989, 1991). Mathematical life history experiences can be
used to exemplify and discuss some of the constructs presented in the
Standards. Many of the goals and specific areas for increased and
decreased attention recommended in the Standards (1989) are
exemplified by actual events in the participants' lives. They also
complement Vygotsky's theories.
To illustrate the utility of the model, real vignettes from the life
histories of two professors participating in my study are used. Some of
these are classroom examples, while others involve out of school
experiences. Four categories of experiences that caused individuals to
bridge their ZPDs to operate at a meta-awareness level emerged from the
data. These bridging experiences included: significant interactions with
materials, mentoring experiences, significant peer interactions, and
negative experiences. While sometimes only one theme was evident in the
bridging experience, often two or three were interacting. The following
vignettes are used to illustrate these themes and to show how the model
can bring coherence to individuals' experiences.

Significant Interactions with Materials

Nancy is a Chicana mathematics professor who grew up in the south
valley of Albuquerque. Her earliest mathematical memory involved a
significant bridging experience with materials, specifically her physical
environment. She spoke with enthusiasm about her earliest mathematical
memory " If I were to remember math as geometric... I just remember
always looking at forms and finding patterns in nature. Whether it be a
quilt,... There were lots of quilts around at that time. I just always
remember finding a lot of beauty in pat(ems, geometric type patterns"
Geometry and construction pat(ems were engaging for both Nancy and her
father.
Another signif icant bridging experience for Nancy involved
interactions with materials and her father as mentor. Her father was a
" jack-of-all trades, like many labourers. His primary job was sheet
metal. He was always laying plans on the metal, and I was always
tagging along with my Dad. And he would fold the metal objects up and
come up with these nice boxes, like an air conditioner box. I'd see it laid
out, then I'd try to visualize what it would look like when he was finished
with it. He was

A Vygotskian Perspective 17
al-ways
planning this out on paper and I just always thought that was neat!
~
-.So, I guess that I would duplicate that behaviour with cardboard and stuff
like that. Being that we were not from a well-to-do family we had to
invent
` i our games. We'd have to invent a lot of instructions. So that if we
wanted to play anything we would have to build our own objects."
~
Mentoring
Experiences and Peer Interactions
Nancy especially enjoyed working on the projects discussed above
~with her father and with friends. These peer interactions with the
-m~aterials also became significant bridges. " Wed have to take great care
in t-he- construction, plan it out, make sure our lines were straight. I
guess I was not foreign to measuring, constructing,... I always enjoyed it."
Nancy also delighted in inventing her activities. These early
experiences have
~~ ca~rried into her adult life. Recently, she finished building her own house,
~ -~
le""aming
about contracting and subcontracting out parts of the building.
" I did most of the finishing work, the finishing touches- painting,
r
caulking,
staining"
Nancy feels very connected to her culture, yet she
- going against some of its norms by building her own house. "
is
In a male dominated society, which is a whole different society, you learn
to respect people for their trades," Her mathematical interests are closely
related to her construction and real life problem solving experiences. "
I am still interested in spatial visualization and how it relates to problem
solving."
Negative
Experien ces
~
Curtis is a Black male who grew up in Baltimore and is now a
professor at a southwestern university. Curtis earliest memory regarding
mathematics went back to fourth grade. He remembers " multiplying two
six digit numbers... and I could never get all the rows straight! It was just
terrible. I got bored with it, and you never get the right answer if the
rows are not straight Curtis felt that he and many of his " classmates got
~t
urned
off in math at that point." Yet, Curtis remembers when he was very
young, before multiplication was " taught" in school, it intrigued him. " I
actually figured out what multiplication was on my own when I was in the
third grade... I thought that was neat! I used to play marbles and I
remember putting them in rows of four and I figured it out by looking at
the rows." It concerned Curtis that the algorithm and product were overly
stressed -in his math class, rather than emphasizing an understanding of
concept and the
the
process.
This negative six-digit multiplication experience exemplifies one
which the Standards (1989) suggest-should receive decreased attention.
As would
be expected,
it affected
Curtis' mathematical
development, particularly his attitude. It appears that Curtis was able
to figure out a more advanced problem within his ZPD with the aid of
a manipulative material (marbles). However, when his fourth grade

teacher gave him a " tedious six-digit multiplication problem" (Curtis'

words), this problem was not within in his ZPD. Furthermore, he did
not feel that it was a

18 Taylor
meaningful experience for him to conquer, therefore, he gave up on it and
developed a negative attitude toward tedious and boring problems.
When asked about how he felt about the way in which mathematics
was taught Curtis' response revealed his concern about the product rather
than process emphasis: " When I think back there was a lot of emphasis, in
the beginning, on being perfect, especially when we were doing the big
multiplications. There was just so much you had to do to get the final
answer. The right answer was the big emphasis. If the answer was
wrong, it was all wrong, there was no in-between." He believed that his
teachers carried the product emphasis too far: " Even if you made two
mistakes, they cancelled each other out, and you got the right answer,
the teachers were not worried about that." In fact, Curtis felt that the
teachers were not even dealing with checking the process, This product
orientation frustrated Curtis " I can remember, in the beginning, that
[perfect answer orientation} was such a burden to carry about." He
also commented " It [the way mathematics was taught} did not appeal to
me because I got the feeling that most of the teachers were just kinda
there. ...I know, as a student, I came
away with the feeling they felt this is just another course I have to teach,
it's 2:30 and I`m leaving at 3:20, so let's get this overt"
Curtis felt that his previous teachers` lack of enthusiasm affected
him and his peers: " You can imagine how we felt!" These negative role
models affected Curtis` attitude toward mathematics and his development
as a teacher; he learned what not to do. Imagine what a different
experience Curtis would have had if his teachers had positive
attitudes toward mathematics and teaching, and provided him with
meaningful learning situations within his ZPD. Yet, the series of negative
learning experiences affected Curtis` development by serving as bridges
to his reflecting at a meta-awareness level,

Significant Experiences with a Mentor, Materials and Peers

A significant high school bridging experience Nancy had involved
interactions with materials (her textbook), her teacher, and her
classmates. "I have thought of this before, wondering how did I end up
in math.... I think the first thing that turned me on to math was in the
ninth grade. I had fallen down and injured my knee; so I was out of
school for about two weeks. The only book I had with me, and I had to
be hospitalized because of this injury, was my math text. And at that
time it was the SMSG series. I found it very readable for some reason. I
covered a few chapters. So, when I returned to class I was far beyond the
class." On her first day back her teacher asked the class a question
about the present lesson. What followed had a dramatic effect on
Nancy and she feels " was the first thing that had turned me on to math."
That is, as far as a significant school interaction. " I knew the answer
to it and raised my hand to give the answer. She [the teacher}
slammed the book down on the desk and said `you mean Nancy has been
gone for so many days and she is the one that is going to answer this

question,` She never permitted me to answer. And, at

A Vygotskian Perspective 19
- that point I was kinda embarrassed, After that point, I just realized that I
could
read math.... I think, at that point it was significant. I`d found I
~
didn't have to rely on someone to feed me the material. I could go ahead
on my own and understand what the author was trying to convey to. the
~reader.... Ever since then I was always in some sort of an experimental or
a-n~
~ advanced class..,, Finding that I could read a math` text was kind of the
~beginning." Nancy is now a mathematics professor known her teaching.
~' When Curtis' " inspiring high school math teacher" gave him
problems that were within his ZPD and interesting, he was motivated to
~~
-w~ork
with his " really good classmates,.,. most of these good students were
~~
girls"
to solve the problems. " It wasn't until I got into high school that I
started
to enjoy math. People were actually trying to get across to you that
~ -~
math
is not just all these numbers, but it can be fun, and I liked that."
.Curtis
~~ c
wished that his earlier (p-re-geometry) teachers had provided more
c,h-~~~~~allenging problems (within his ZPD). He was concerned with the math
~
curric~ulum:
" It was okay if you were the kind of person who went out and
o
loked
around. ...but ...if you were interested in the extra-curriculum, you
hoped to join the math club or go to the library. There were a lot of students
who did that; I wasn't one who did." Yet, Curtis and his female peers
created signif icant bridging experiences for themselves when they
cooperatively worked on mathematics problems. After earning a PhD in
Mathematics, Curtis is now a professor who is known for being an
excellent teacher.
As a graduate student Nancy had a significant bridging experience
with an article written on " The relative effectiveness of a symbolic and
concrete model in learning a selected mathematical principle" written by
Elizabeth Fennama. This prompted Nancy to develop her interest in
manipulative materials further and to do a research study duplicating the
work with geoboards.
Curtis and Nancy, as well as the other ten participants in my study,
all had signif icant interactions with mentors. One of Nancy's doctoral
professors at Harvard, Karen Watson-Gego, " instilled the qualitative part
in me." Up until that point Nancy had been focusing on quantitative
research. During her masters program Mildred Kersch influenced Nancy.
" She ~triggered an interest in research that I didn't know was there. Up
until that point I was just majoring in math and hadn't really given any
thought to the learning of mathematics. We worked together creating what
who called a math library" from the books, manipulative materials, games,
and puzzles of a mathematics professor who had recently died and left her
personal library to the department.

Connecting the Standards

A Vygotskian perspective presents an integrated theoretical
framework which looks at the whole rather than dwelling on the parts, In
this age of fragmentation and specialization it is important to keep the

20. Taylor
whole .complex picture in mind. This view is one which is
complementary to the NCTM Standards (1989) emphasis oP'. the
importance of mathematical connections, usefulness, communication,
solving,
reasoning,
andproblem
attitudes.
Vignettes from the mathematical life histories of outstanding
teachers are used to show the efficacy of both the Standards (1989)
and the Professional Standards (1991) in the learning and teaching of
mathematics. Through these vignettes we can see how life
experiences influenced learning, attitude development, and teaching.
More specifically, examining mathematical life histories can illuminate
the essence of the Standards, as well as the context in which teachers
apply the Standards. The value of using this qualitative methodology
(not often used in exploring such issues) is that it can yield new
attitudes. about the development of mathematical
information
NCTM's five general goals rest on the assumption that students'
should not only be able to solve problems and reason ,mathematically, but
also to become confident and value mathematics, communicate it
effectively, and make connections between -mathematics and other
subjects/aspects of their lives. These goals illuminate the importance
of/and the connections among thoughts, feelings, and actions.
~
In Frye's
(1989) words implementing the Standards implies the use
of:
Words like explore, communicate, construct, use, and
represent stress the involvement of students on the active
" doing" of mathematics. Words like collaborate, question,
express, value, share, and enjoy `bring a new f lavour to the
work of the students. Words like reflect, appreciate, connect,
apply, and extend build a new attitude toward mathematics
and its uses. (p. 59)

Further, a Vygotskian perspective supports the importance of such

alternative teaching strategies as using cooperative groups, providing
opportunities for significant peer interactions, and presenting and posing
problems beyond students so that they can maximize learning and bridge
their zones. This perspective also stresses the importance of play and
our cultural environment in development. Vygotsky believed that "
creative imagination grows out of the play of young children"' (Williams,
1989, p,
117). It suggests the significance of meaningful interactions among one's
thoughts, feelings, and actions (attitude).
Concluding Thoughts
Vygotsky has been called a " genius" who lived ahead of his time

l|

(Wertsch, 1988). The model and thoughts presented in this article offer
ways of extending Vygotskian thought to mathematics education and the

A Vygotskian Perspective 21
affectivedomain. The model can also help teachers todevelop a
conceptual framework supporting their philosophies of learning
and
~~.
teaching ~m~ ~~ a thematics. One inservice teacher education graduate
student said " I really appreciate your model. There are so many
influences
a child's
-a~
ttitude andonthis
is a wonderful visual representation, I think it would
~really help people who see this to move toward supporting the NCTM
-~ ~
Standards
and the models of teaching and assessing behind them," Several
other teachers reported that the model helped them to create bridging
~
-experiences
and stretch their students' learning and build their
mathematical
In this article attitude development is explored with particular
confidence.
reference to examining significant bridging experiences. These vignettes
can be used to help educators (including both inservice and preservice
teachers) examine attitude development as well as to encourage reflection
on their own mathematical life histories. The attitudedevelopment model
and life history vignettes are linked to the Standards (1989) and the
P-rofessional Standards (1991). This can encourage reflection among the
videos presented and other national curriculum (such as Australia's) as
-~
well.
The interactions among thoughts, feelings, and actions can be
examined in different cultures.
NOTE:
My thanks to the participants who shared their mathematical life histories,
Thanks also to Vera John-Steiner, Reuben Hersch, Mark Pogrebin, John
Lofty, Ellen Stevens, Myra Bookman, and Olive Ann Slotta for their
insightful comments and reactions to some of the ideas expressed in this
paper.

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