The Klein Project: A Living & Connected View of Mathematics for Teachers

One hundred years ago, in 1908, Felix Klein’s lectures on mathematics for secondary teachers were first published (in German). This comprehensive view of the field challenged both teachers and mathematicians to consider the relationship between learning mathematics and the nature of disciplinary mathematics. The two volumes were republished in 2004 by Dover. In the intervening 100 years the nature of the mathematics has changed—the crises in foundations, the advent of computing, new fields, and resolutions of some major mathematical challenges. It was agreed at the 2007 Executive Meeting of the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI) that revisiting the issues presented by linking the topics and approaches of senior secondary or undergraduate mathematics with the field of mathematics would make an appropriate joint project for the ICMI and International Mathematics Union (IMU). At their respective March 2008 and April 2008 meetings, the project was adopted in principle.