Potentialities of Literature as a Source for the History of Mathematics Education: the work of Pedro Nava

Abstract

Inside the current movement to broaden research sources in the History of Education, and particularly in the History of Mathematics Education, in addition to the so-called official documentation, a variety of sources from the school culture and society in general are currently being mobilized and produced, such as periodicals, tests and examinations, school notebooks, and textbooks. Through an annotated reading of the memorial works of Pedro Nava, this article seeks to show the potentialities of yet another source, literature, in the study of the History of Brazilian Mathematics Education. Discussion and reflections on methodological aspects involved in the use of literature as an historical research source are also presented. Keywords: History of Mathematical Education. Sources. Pedro Nava.