ERIC Number: EJ1219054
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1051-1970
EISSN: N/A
Measuring Income Inequality in a General Education or Calculus Mathematics Classroom
O'Donovan, Barbara; Geary, Krisan
PRIMUS, v29 n3-4 p244-258 2019
Income inequality is a central social justice concern, and hence excellent motivation for real-world applications in mathematics classrooms at every level. We describe the "Mathematics for Social Justice" course at Saint Michael's College, giving a specific example of one of the typical social justice projects for the course, and showing how projects can be adapted to other courses such as Calculus. The projects described focus on the Gini coefficient, a commonly used measure of income inequality. The original lesson used the trapezoid rule and Microsoft Excel to estimate the Gini coefficient for a country, while the project developed for a Calculus I course uses Maple to fit a power function to data and then integration to calculate the Gini coefficient. We also include readings on the Gini coefficient's role in policy formulation and advocacy.
Descriptors: Mathematics Instruction, College Mathematics, Undergraduate Study, Calculus, Income, Social Justice, Social Problems, Interdisciplinary Approach, Student Projects, Teaching Methods
Taylor & Francis. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Vermont
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A