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ABSTRACT
This article describes a study that investigated pre-service teachers’ awareness of the interdisciplinary connections among mathematics, personal finance, and social justice issues. When pre-service teachers understand these connections, they can prepare their students to be responsible, participatory, and justice-oriented citizens in a global economy. Possessing and articulating this awareness are integral components of providing children and youth with the knowledge and skills to improve their life quality and bring about social change. The 68 participants in the study were pre-service teachers at two public universities in the United States, one in the Midwest and one in the Southeast. The participants at the Midwestern university were enrolled in general education classes, and the participants at the Southeastern university were enrolled in elementary, middle school, and high school mathematics methods classes in the Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 semesters. They completed surveys mid-semester, in which they were prompted to discuss mathematics literacy, financial literacy, and their social applications. The researchers found the majority of the pre-service teachers had narrow or intermediate conceptions of mathematics and financial literacy, discussing the need to understand mathematics and financial terminology, as well as their social connections. However, the participants were largely unable to articulate related social justice issues, seeing mathematics as an isolated discipline.