Having the conversation: maths and science teachers talk numeracy

Numeracy is defined as the ability "to use mathematics effectively to meet the general demands of life at home, in paid work, and for participation in community and civic life 11 (Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers, 1997, p. 15). When students use maths to solve unfamiliar problems in the maths classroom or problems in other curriculum areas, they are, in fact, demonstrating numeracy. In schools, much of the explicit teaching of numeracy occurs in the mathematics classroom (Australian Curriculum and Reporting Authority, 2014), and hence, the responsibility falls to mathematics teachers. However, given that numeracy demands occur in many, if not all subjects, across the curriculum there is a growing insistence that all teachers are teachers of numeracy (AAMT, 1997; Hogan, 2000; Perso, 2006). So how can teachers across curriculum areas work together to improve students 1 numeracy? What should we be considering when trying to teach for numeracy in our classes? This paper uses numeracy in a science (chemistry) context to explore these questions and illustrates that the mathematics teacher cannot teach all the knowledge required for a student to be numerate in discipline specific contexts.