2026 Theses Doctoral

Romanian Mathematics Education 1895-1945: A History Through Gazeta Matematică

Wilson, Elizabeth M.

This dissertation presents a historical analysis of Gazeta Matematică, a Romanian mathematics education journal, from 1895 to 1945. It examines the publication's development during a period of national transformation, arguing that it played an important role in shaping and modernizing Romanian mathematics education. Grounded in the social history of mathematics education and informed by periodical studies and qualitative content analysis, the dissertation investigates three questions: the journal’s stated objectives, organization, and key educational topics; the editors and members who shaped its development; and the ways the journal reflected and responded to political and educational change between 1895 and 1945.

The study uses a combined descriptive and interpretive design. It analyzes the Diverse subcategory of the electronic Gazeta Matematică archive (n = 1,924 items) to map changes in publication formats and institutional routines over time. Within this subcategory, 227 narrative Articles were identified and coded into five analytic domains (National Education and Pedagogy, Journal and Society Life, Mathematical Reasoning and Proof, International Mathematics and Reform, and Political and Military Content). Since full-text preservation is uneven, the dissertation applies a two-stage strategy: title based coding of all 227 Articles and close reading of a purposive subset of 65 full-text Articles.

The findings show that Gazeta Matematică functioned as a journal and as a durable educational institution. It supported a participatory mathematical culture through problems, solutions, competitions, and educational discussion, while also documenting professional networks, society activity, and international connections. Over time, the journal developed increasing organizational complexity and institutional capacity. Across major political changes, it maintained a stable editorial voice, with political references appearing selectively through monarchy, military institutions, and wartime service rather than overt partisan debate.

By combining quantitative mapping of publication patterns with qualitative analysis of educational discourse, this dissertation contributes to the history of mathematics education by showing how Gazeta Matematică both recorded and shaped mathematical culture in modern Romania.