Niche-Making in Intersectional Spaces: Narratives of a Mathematics Teacher Union Activist

In a world of rigid social norms that have shaped women’s lives, there are those who have broken stereotypes and advanced the field. This qualitative research investigates the narratives of Kaisog, a mathematics teacher whose strategic and deliberate decisions created within intersectional spaces brought about a negotiation of a mathematics teacher’s professional identity in the eventual creation of a new professional category: that of a mathematics teacher union activist. This paper explores the three categories of intersectionality namely structural, representational, and political, that were present in the life of Kaisog. Thematic analysis of the data revealed three themes of intersectionality: Neglecting the Vulnerable, Selective Mathematics, Women in the Workplace, and Being Queer in Society. It also argues how these intersectional spaces created niches for Kaisog: The Designated “Mother” Role, Decolonizing the Mathematics Curriculum, and Social Justice through Mathematics Education. Kaisog’s empowering structures include quality basic education, brilliant teachers, a matriarchal Ilonggo culture, and supportive family. Kaisog used mathematics as a tool for liberation and for achieving social justice and thus, creating a new niche for herself, that of a mathematics teacher union activist.