“Not a Math Person”
I know I’m late to the party on this one. Maybe it’s because I’m not a “traditionally” trained teacher or because I’m not in the classroom daily, but it was only recently that I realized just how common the phrase “I’m not a math person” really is.
It hit me during a professional development session. An administrator was emphasizing to the teachers that all students are math students. At first, I thought: That’s a great mantra—positive and aspirational. But as the conversation kept going, I realized this wasn’t just motivational talk. It was pushing back against a deeply ingrained narrative—one I hadn’t fully recognized until that moment.
Afterward, in conversation with a colleague, it clicked: countless students—and even many teachers—have casually claimed that some people are just not math people. And the more I thought about it, the more alarming it felt. Why does this idea feel so acceptable when we’d never talk this way about other subjects?
Imagine being out with friends and hearing someone say, “Oh, I’m not a reading person. I avoid it at all costs.” You’d probably assume they were joking—because reading isn’t optional. Or picture a conversation about music, where someone declares, “I’m not a music person.” People might say they dislike a genre or can’t play an instrument, but to dismiss music entirely would sound absurd. Personally, I don’t love studying history in academic settings, but I’d never define myself as “not a history person.” I’d simply say I don’t enjoy it.
So why is math different? Why has it become socially acceptable—even normal—to define ourselves in or out of math altogether?
This realization led me down a bigger path of questioning. Where did this phrase come from? Why does it persist? And why only math?
That question has been sitting with me ever since. The more I thought about it, the more I realized this mindset didn’t just appear out of nowhere. It has roots. It has history. And it continues to shape how students, teachers, and entire communities experience math today.
This series will be my attempt to dig into that story—not to assign blame, but to uncover how we got here and what it might take to imagine something better.
To keep the momentum going, I’ll be posting a new installment every week instead of my usual every other week.