International collaborative studies in mathematics education

Abstract

This chapter focusses on the concept of "collaboration," with particular reference to mathematics education research in which the participating scholars are from different nations. After commenting that collaboration involves more than sharing, uniting, or cooperating, the concept is discussed in the light of the work of ICMI, IEA, PISA, RECSAM, MERGA, PME, LPS, and international aid programs. After providing summaries of the work undertaken in these programs and organizations, the following seven dimensions that influence the quality of "collaboration" within a program or organization were informally identified: (a) clear statement of raison d'être, (b) consistency of actions with raison d'être, (c) level of democratic governance, (d) whether wider international discussion is stimulated, (e) the extent of influence on policies, (f) the extent of influence on practices, and (g) the extent of influence on research directions. Using these dimensions as criteria, we assessed the quality of collaboration in the work of each of the above-named programs or organizations. Our conclusion is that, whereas the early work of ICMI did not feature high-quality collaboration, the ongoing work of most aspects of the other programs and organizations does feature high-quality collaboration.