first Announcement

Mathematics Education and Society
7^th International Conference
17 – 22 March 2012
Johannesburg, South Africa

First Announcement

The MES 7 Conference is a forum for discussing the social, political, cultural and ethical dimensions of mathematics education. The Conference aims to bring together mathematics educators from around the world to disseminate research that explores these dimensions of mathematics education, to discuss theoretical and methodological issues related to research of this type, to foster international co-operation in the area, and to develop a strong research community interested in these dimensions.

Following previous conferences that took place in Nottingham (UK, 1998), Montechoro (Portugal, 2000), Helsingør (Denmark, 2002), Gold Coast (Australia, 2004), Albufeira (Portugal, 2008) and Berlin (Germany, 2010), we are now pleased to announce the 7^th Mathematics Education and Society Conference (MES 7) in Broederstroom, South Africa.

The conference is jointly hosted by:

University of the Witwatersrand	University of Cape Town	University of KwaZulu-Natal

Venue and Dates

The conference MES 7 will be held from Saturday 17^th March to Thursday 22^nd March 2012. Conference activities, accommodation of participants and meals will be held at the Alpha Conference Centre in Broederstroom, near Johannesburg.

The Centre is located in the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountain range. The area is known for nature conversation and the protection of sites of historical and cultural significance. It is an area steeped in history, with the Cradle of Humankind bordering on Alpha Conference Centre. This is the location of the discovery of “Mrs. Ples”, a skull estimated to be around 2.3 million years old, and “Little Foot”, an almost complete hominid skeleton aged at about 3.5 million years. “Karabo” (meaning “answer” in Setswana), a 1.95 million-year-old partial hominid skeleton, was discovered by 14-year-old Matthew Berger in 2010.

The second Political Dimensions of Mathematics Education(PDME) conference, a forerunner to the Mathematics and Society Conferences was held at the Alpha Conference Centre in 1993.

For more about the Alpha Conference Centre visit http://www.alphaconference.com.

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Programme

Following the general model of previous MES conferences, MES 7 will open on the evening of the 17^th March with the opening ceremony and the opening panel. MES 7 will close at lunchtime of the 22^th March.

During the five days of the conference there will be four invited plenary sessions (including plenary responses), permanent discussion groups, symposia, papers and project presentations.

Papers for the conference will be available on this website prior to the conference, allowing participants to prepare for the discussions at the conference.

Sat 17	Sun 18	Mon 19	Tue 20	Wed 21	Thu 22
	Plenary 1 Disc. Groups Plenary Response	Plenary 2 Disc. Groups Plenary Response	Plenary 3 Disc. Groups Plenary Response	Plenary 4 Disc. Groups Plenary Response	Closing panel Closing
	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
Registration Opening Panel	Papers Project Pres. Symposia	Papers Project Pres. Symposia	Excursion	Papers Project Pres. Symposia	Departure
Dinner	Dinner	Dinner Agora 1	Excursion	Dinner Agora 2	Departure

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Registration

Registration will be possible from 1^st June to 15^th September 2011 (early bird) and 1^st October to 31^st December 2011 (late registration), via the conference website.

It is expected that the conference fee will be approx. R9 200/R7 825 (accommodation in single / double room). This fee includes conference registration, a set of printed proceedings, accommodation at Alpha Conference Centre for 5 nights, meals (excluding alcoholic beverages) during the days of the conference, and coffee breaks. The late registration fee will be approximately R9 900/R8 425 (accommodation in single / double room). All registration fees will be confirmed in the Second Announcement.

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Call for Papers, Project Presentations and Symposia

Papers, project presentations and symposia are invited for submission. All submissions will be peer reviewed by two members of the MES community. A critical evaluation suggesting possible revisions and recommending its acceptance will be provided to authors.

All submissions should meet the aims of the conference and have a clear underpinning social/political/cultural/ethical theme.

The deadline for submissions is 30^th June 2011.

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Guideline for Submissions of Papers, Project Presentations and Symposia

Write the paper in English (language editing support will be provided for accepted papers).
Use this template available at the conference website. Please use this template without modifying it and without exceeding the limits indicated below.
Papers: Papers could be theoretical papers, empirical research reports or discussion essays addressing themes of relevance to the conference. Length: maximum 10 pages.
Project presentations: Shorter on-going projects of theoretical, empirical or developmental character are welcomed for discussion during the conference. The project description in written form should address a topic of relevance to the conference. Length: maximum 4 pages.
Symposia: A symposium proposal should include the aims of the symposium, a rationale for its relevance to the conference and a suggested plan for how the symposium will be conducted. Length: maximum 4 pages.

The accepted papers, project presentations and symposia will be published on the MES 7 website prior to the conference and in the printed proceedings that participants will receive upon arrival at the conference.

Please submit your contribution electronically in an e-mail to the Programme Chair, Margot Berger, at mes7prog@wits.ac.za, as a Word 2007 readable attachment.

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Important Dates

Registration on the website:

Earlybird registration: 1^st June to 15^th September 2011

Late registration: 21^st September to 31^st December 2011

Submission of papers, project presentations and symposia: 30^th June 2011

Decision on acceptance of submissions: 1^st August 2011

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Organising Committee

Karin Brodie (University of the Witwatersrand)

Kate Le Roux (University of Cape Town)

Margot Berger (University of the Witwatersrand)

Vera Frith (University of Cape Town)

Jacob Jaftha (University of Cape Town)

Mellony Graven (Rhodes University)

Nico Molefe (University of the Witwatersrand)

Hamsa Venkat (University of the Witwatersrand)

Renuka Vithal (University of KwaZulu-Natal)

MES 7 International Advisory Board (in alphabetical order)

Sikunder Ali Baber (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)

Rosa Becerra (Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador)

Karin Brodie (University of the Witwatersrand)

Tony Cotton (Leeds Metropolitan University)

Beth Herbel-Eisenmann (Michigan State University)

Uwe Gellert Freie Universität Berlin)

Eva Jablonka (Luleå University of Technology)

Clive Kanes (King’s College London)

Swapna Mukhopadhyay (Portland State University)

Information on MES1 to 5:- http://mes.crie.fc.ul.pt

Information on MES6:- http://www.ewi-psy.fu-berlin.de/en/v/mes6

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Contacting the Organising Committee

Registration and accommodation queries:

Fatima Saban

Address:	MES7 Conference
	Conference Management Centre
	Barnard Fuller Building, UCT Faculty of Health Sciences
	Anzio Road
	Observatory, 7925
	South Africa
Phone:	+27 21 406 6330
Fax:	+27 21 448 6263
Email:	fatima.saban@uct.ac.za

Programme queries:

Margot Berger

Address:	School of Education
	Wits University
	27 St Andrews Road
	Parktown, 2050
	South Africa
Phone:	+27 11 717 3411
Fax:	+27 11 717 3009
Email:	mes7prog@wits.ac.za