About Mathematical Belief Systems Awareness

Although mathematics education researchers acknowledge a central role for belief systems in teaching and learning processes, the issue has not yet been sufficiently studied, because the analysis of their connections with emotions and attitude is not yet satisfactory. This paper deals with an experimentation -carried out in seven different learning places- founded on the hypothesis of the importance of a particular type of activity. Basically, it consists in making learners aware of their belief systems regarding mathematics: we may therefore talk of ‘a meta-belief systems activity’. The aim of the paper is to submit to the community of mathematics education researchers both some preliminary results regarding this issue and the hypothesis of studying the issue from a theoretical viewpoint.