Blackness and the Pandemic: Critiquing the Mathematics Curriculum in a Large Urban City

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic brought booming economies, seemingly world-class health care systems, educational infrastructures, and the lives and well-being of nations to a complete standstill. Georgia was one of the few states that released their Shelter-in-Place order early, while reports suggest that Black communities have disproportionally higher rates of deaths and hospitalizations. What mathematics would allow students to critically examine the data shared and other data reported about the COVID-19 pandemic? In this essay, we apply a culturally relevant pedagogical (CRP) lens to examine the mathematics curriculum taught in K-12 schools before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, we consider the shortcomings of the curriculum given the impact of the pandemic on Black communities in Atlanta, Georgia, and the barrage of statistics used to inform their lives. We consider how to look at mathematics curriculum through a CRP lens and what that means in terms of the scope of standards that are being addressed and the flexibility for teachers to have autonomy to go beyond the prescribed curriculum. Two concentration areas are addressed, and they highlight how to use a CRP lens for secondary and elementary mathematics relevant to our local context in ways that envision how mathematics curriculum can support Black children moving forward.