I'm referencing the source material in the Newsweek article. How can it not relevant?

You can read https://equitablemath.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/11... yourself and see the full current context.

I say "current" because it was updated in May 2021. The Newsweek article cites the original publication, which is at https://web.archive.org/web/20210212170440/https://equitable... .

The current document says: "There is a greater focus on getting the "right" answer than understanding concepts and reasoning."

This is immediately followed by the explanation:

> Upholding the idea that there are always right and wrong answers perpetuate objectivity as well as fear of open conflict. Some math problems may have more than one right answer and some may not have a solution at all, depending on the content and the context. And when the focus is only on getting the right answer, the complexity of the mathematical concepts and reasoning may be underdeveloped, missing opportunities for deep learning.

There's also (on a search for the word 'focus'):

> And when the focus is only on getting the right answer, the complexity of the mathematical concepts and reasoning may be underdeveloped, missing opportunities for deep learning. ...

NOTE! In the 2020 document, the quote is indeed "The focus is on getting the “right” answer. / The concept of mathematics being purely objective is unequivocally false, and teaching it is even much less so. Up-holding the idea that there are always right and wrong answers perpetuate objectivity as well as fear of open conflict."

The original document asks teachers that instead of emphasizing questions with only one "right" answer to instead:

> - Choose problems that have complex, competing, or multiple answers

> Verbal Example: Come up with at least two answers that might solve this problem

> Classroom Activity: Challenge standardized test questions by getting the “right” answer, but justify other answers by unpacking the assumptions that are made in the problem.

> Classroom Activity: Deconstructed Multiple Choice - given a set of multiple choice answers, students discuss why these answers may have been included (can also be used to highlight common mistakes).

> Professional Development: Study the purpose of math education, and re-envision it. Schooling as we know it began during the industrial revolution, when precision and accuracy were highly valued. What are the myriad ways we can conceptualize mathematics in today’s world and beyond?

> - Engage with true problem solving

> Verbal Example: What are some strategies we can use to engage with this problem?

> Classroom Activity: Using a set of data, analyze it in multiple ways to draw different conclusions.

> Professional Development: Study the art of problem solving by engaging in rich, complex mathematical problems. Consider whether your own content knowledge is sufficient to allow you to problem solve through math without the strategies you typically use.

Do you interpret this 2020 document as arguing "Trying to get the right answer is white supremacy"? I don't. It's all about how "right" is a tricky concept, and influenced by the dominant culture.

Nor does it come across like encouraging a "lifetime of innumeracy and being the patsies of those who do know math." And I don't see how someone could draw that conclusion after reading the source material.

I can understand how someone can draw that conclusion after reading cherry-picked quotes. But that's why I think it's important to reference the original material.

The points in the updated document are along the same lines as the original document, so it's not like the authors did a 180, but rather clarified their intent.