Qué función social cumplen las matemáticas: una aproximación a los cánones de belleza mediante el uso de las medidas de tendencia central

Abstract

This document presents the creation and management of a modeling environment that takes place at the Nicanor Parra School1, a public educational institution located in the town of Fontibón2. In this environment, the intentions to problematize the consequences that could arise from assuming beauty standards imposed by social networks in an adolescent population are integrated. Going deeper into this phenomenon3 arises from the work that the author of this monograph developed in the academic space of intermediate practice III—management—which aims to construct a classroom project that seeks to promote the learning of mathematics, emphasizing the role they play in everyday life. At that time, an entire project was developed around the perceptions that students have towards their bodies and towards their peers. The particularity of this topic caused great impact and intrigue among adolescents regarding the ways in which it would be possible to link mathematics with intentions as complex as those described. Based on the above and from the results obtained at the time, it was decided to deepen this line of research, starting from the construction of a modeling environment in a socio-critical perspective, which is not only concerned with the ways in which we perceive our bodies, but also reflects on the framework in which society encourages the construction of consumer bodies. This is why it is necessary to delve into the discussion of beauty canons and how they spread and influence the lives of adolescents. This characterization is built from an entire theoretical argument that describes the historical evolution of this phenomenon, in line with the main characteristics that make up a modeling environment in a socio-critical perspective as classroom practice. It should be noted that the development of the classroom environment aims to promote the learning of school statistics—measures of central tendency—, based on the construction of critical thinking based on the development of tasks within the framework of what Salazar, Mancera, Camelo and Perilla (2017) conceive as five stages for the development of mathematical modeling environments in the classroom. It is important to highlight that the research development carried out in the institution is given thanks to the intentions intended by Professor Friedrich4 —teacher of grade 10-X— within the framework of building, in the classroom, a totally new learning environment for his students. . This is because he states that he perceives that his classes fall into somewhat traditional processes and feels that the impact or interest on the students is not what was expected. To account for the above and characterizing the structure of the text, initially the necessary arguments are developed that support the need to analyze and reflect on this type of problem. Likewise, it addresses the ideas that give life to the approach of a research question that, based on certain objectives, determine the intentions to be developed. The next section presents a theoretical discussion associated with what the socio-critical visions of education and mathematical modeling mean. In the third, theoretical manifestations are addressed that allow us to assume positions regarding the construction of modeling environments in the classroom, giving importance to the historical evolution of beauty canons. For the fourth section, a work route is defined from the stages of mathematical modeling in the socio-critical perspective, these establish roles that are assumed and developed by students. To conclude, the final section describes the reconstruction of the events evidenced throughout the classroom environment, an action that is necessary to determine the final considerations and reflections that were obtained thanks to modeling as a methodological practice.