Debasmita Basu

Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning

Director of Quantitative Reasoning

My name is Debasmita Basu. I am an Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning and the Director of Quantitative Reasoning Program at The New School. I completed my Ph.D in Mathematics Education from Montclair State University. Before that, I was a high school mathematics teacher in India for four years. During my time teaching there, I was dismayed that my students tended to consider mathematics as a set of rules and formulas with little to no connection to their lives. Hence, with the greater goal of changing the nature of school mathematics, I started her doctoral studies. My research agenda focuses on designing mathematical activities that aim to cultivate students’ critical consciousness towards various social and environmental justice issues and help them realize the power and value of mathematics. Such activities develop within students an appreciation towards the utilitarian value of mathematics in their daily lives and use mathematics literacy to understand social and environmental phenomenon relevant to their lives.