Conclusion Final Considerations: Driving Forces and Barriers Affecting Curriculum Reforms

Theme A presents two types of studies. The first type are cases of reforms undertaken in various countries or regions that are considered special for different reasons. Some were chosen because they produced a significant change in the curriculum, sometimes for a short period of time – like reforms related to the New Math movement – and sometimes as a long-standing process that is still in force today and even expanding internationally – as is the case with the Realistic Mathematics Education movement. In both cases, however, they left remarkable effects and can be located at the origin of the research communities in mathematics education, the local as well as the international ones. The second type of cases and choices of past reforms, illustrate how they could be affected by political movements in the countries, by international movements like those promoted by the OECD, by UNESCO or, more significantly, by ICMI itself, and also by cultural values or visions about the nature and role of mathematics in our societies.