Austria’s national curricula and international educational initiatives emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary competencies across all subjects. However, incorporating socially relevant topics into mathematics education remains a challenge for teachers, textbook authors, and researchers. The project MatheConnect addresses this challenge by involving us—students from BG St. Martin in Villach—as Citizen Scientists. Through our participation, we contribute to data collection and analysis, and the development and evaluation of interdisciplinary teaching materials that connects mathematics to real-world issues.
In this presentation, we will share the first results of our research, highlighting topics that students and members of the public find meaningful for inclusion in math classrooms. By exploring these perspectives, we aim to take the first steps toward designing cross-curricular activities that connect mathematics with everyday life and societal issues. Our findings provide valuable insights into how mathematics education can be made more engaging and applicable.
As students directly involved in this project, we will present our experiences, challenges, and key takeaways, emphasizing the importance of integrating student voices in educational innovation. We look forward to discussing our work and contributing to the conversation on interdisciplinary and socially relevant mathematics education.