How to Overcome Push-Back in Math Education

Making Math Moments That Matter · Apr 23, 2026 · 25m

In math classrooms, there’s something that shows up again and again: resistance. It can come from students, from teachers, and sometimes even from the school system itself. And over time, it can start to feel like your job is to constantly push against it—trying to convince, redirect, and move people forward.

But what if we’ve been thinking about resistance all wrong? What if it’s not something people are, but something they’re experiencing in the moment? Because when students push back or teachers hesitate to try something new, it’s easy to label that as unwillingness. In reality, it’s often…