The controversy of the Common Core State Standards for mathematics is just the latest in a long history of disagreements about the content and nature of mathematics education.
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Math is the discipline that disciplines the mind—and the math classroom is widely understood as a venue for debate about how citizens should be trained to think.
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By considering the history of curricular reforms, particularly the mid-century “new math” movement, we might better understand ongoing debates about the control and content of math education.