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Science Teaching Department. Didactical practices of computer algebra in mathematics education. Nurit Zehavi Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel TIME 2008. The MathComp Project (Mathematics on Computers). - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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TIME 2008 1
Didactical practices of computer algebra in mathematics education
Science Teaching Department Nurit Zehavi
Weizmann Instituteof Science, Israel
TIME 2008TIME 2008
TIME 2008 2
The MathComp Project (Mathematics on Computers) The MathComp is a R&D project that began in the
early 1990s, with the aim of integrating CAS into teaching to broaden learning opportunities and to promote greater mathematical understanding.
Noss & Hoyles, 1996Windows on Mathematical Meanings: Learning Cultures and Computers
TIME 2008 3
Issues discussed in CAME symposia
Chevallard’s anthropological approach Instrumentation Bridging the gap between techniques and
theory CAS & DGS Teachers in transit (professional development)
)2003(
http://www.lkl.ac.uk/research/came/
(1999)
TIME 2008 4
Chevallard’s anthropological approach to the didactics of mathematics
Didactics of mathematics as a domain of research is part of ‘anthropology of mathematical knowledge’ that is concerned with the emergence and growth of the mathematical knowledge in educational settings (“institutions”).
An educational setting can be characterized by its theory of practices, i. e.
a praxeology.
TIME 2008 5
The components of praxeology of a given topicThe components of praxeology of a given topic::
The constructed knowledge is strongly dependent on
the perspectives of the partners within a specific
educational setting on the above components.
(Types of) Tasks Techniques
“Technology” (Discourse of the techniques)
Theory
TIME 2008 6
Two Topics:
From a word problem to a family of word problems: In what ways can CAS help in solving word problems?
(Zehavi & Mann, IJCAME, 1999)
Justifications of geometric results using
CAS: Can an integration of features of DGS and CAS be useful for approaching proof?
TIME 2008 7
The School of Pythagoras
Pythagoras, who lived in the sixth century BC, ran a school.
He was once asked how many students are in his school.
After thinking awhile, he said:
1/2 of the students are now participating in a math class.
1/4 of the students are now in a science class.
1/7 of the students are now silently exercising their minds.
In addition to all the above, three students are in the garden.
How many students were in the school?
Study I: In what ways can CAS help in
solving word problems?
TIME 2008 8
Debugging the modelDebugging the model
TIME 2008 9
PD - Teachers’ contribution:
Tutorials for making explicit the implicit restrictions of the model, for example:
Change the problem so that the number of students in the School of Pythagoras will be 280 instead of 28.
x x xx 3
2 4 70
3280 30
28
3
28x n
TIME 2008 10
Diophantus, known as the 'father of algebra' – his epitaph“This tomb hold Diophantus Ah, what a marvel! And the tomb tells scientifically the measure of his life….” (Newman (ed.) The World of Mathematics, 1956)
How long did Diophantus live?
The equation is an object to explore; not just a tool for finding an answer
TIME 2008 11
1/9 of my life I solved math exercises by hand.
Then I was introduced to Derive and used it for 1/3 of my life .
Later, I knew everything! so I did math in my head for another 1/3 of my life.
In the last 26 years I did not learn any math, I just played music.
How long have I lived?
Math & Music
x
TIME 2008 12
Why do you want us to deal with ancient people?!
Let’s invent problems on someone more
interesting like… ET –
The Extra Terrestrial!!!
Students’ contribution
TIME 2008 13
Student and teacher contribution: A Basketball Game
Sport journalist:Eitan scored 40%Tom scored 25%Eyal scored 15%And Motti, as usual,made 5 three-pointShots.
Readers: The report must be wrong!
TIME 2008 14
Expanding the praxeology of learning word problems in a CASCAS environment
Didactical perspectives: Transferring the control over the process of
modeling to the student. By inventing problems the students share
responsibility, with the teachers, of the techniques and the validity of the established knowledge in class.
Enabling students to see any given problem as a member of a family of problems through its model.
TIME 2008 15
A new practice: resource e-book for teaching analytic geometry with CAS
A classical task: “Show that the locus of
points through which two perpendicular tangents are drawn to a given ellipse/hyperbola is ….."
The director circleThe director circle
TIME 2008 16
NewNew perspectives on conic perspectives on conic sectionssections
Classical textbook solution: Viète's formula
Users with basic CAS experience: Utilizing CAS for traditional techniques
Users with good mastering of CAS: New instrumented techniques further exploring the solution and the problem
TIME 2008 17
A new task: viewing the parabola under α or 180-α
600
1200
1350
450
di
rect
r
ix
An unfamiliar relationship
2y 4x
2 2(X 3) Y 8
TIME 2008 18
Illustration of tangents to hyperbola when sliding a point on the director circle
the pair of tangents switch from touching one branch to touching both
The relation between visual clues and formal proof
TIME 2008 19
Hanna, (ESM, 2000)
Experimental work with dynamic geometry could lead educators to question the need for analytical proofs.
The key role of proofs in the classroom is to promote mathematical understanding.
Exploration of a problem can lead one to grasp its structure and its ramification, but cannot yield an explicit understanding of every linkexplicit understanding of every link.
Proofs and dynamic geometry
TIME 2008 20
Laborde et al. ( PME Handbook, 2006)
Teaching and Learning Geometry with Technology:
When students were asked to justify conjectures the teachers did not mention the possibility of using Cabri to find a reason or elaborate a proof.
Proofs and dynamic geometry
TIME 2008 21
A significant difference between DGS and CAS
in DGS – The algebraic infrastructure that enables
construction and animation is hidden.in CAS – Users need to develop the algebraic
expressions for producing constructions and insert slider bars related to the parameters for animation.
TIME 2008 22
Proof and CAS
The algebraic expressions that create the animation can be used for justifying the visual results.
Mann, Dana-Picard and Zehavi (2007)
22
19 4
yx
Sliding…
and Proving.…
TIME 2008 23
a=3, b=2
2 2
2 21
x y
a b
1 2 0x x 2 24 9 0 !X Y 2 2 2 2
( ) ( )3 3 3 3
Y X Y X Y X Y X
Symbolic computation in CAS
TIME 2008 24
Symbol Sense in the messy expressionsSymbol Sense in the messy expressions
explicit understanding of every linkexplicit understanding of every link.
TIME 2008 25
Study II: Teachers’ justifications of geometric results using CAS (n = 43)
(a) teachers' views on the need for an algebraic proof of unfamiliar geometric results obtained by experimenting with slider bars in CAS, and
(b) the types of proofs they produced using the expressions that generated the animation.
TIME 2008 26
Goals To construct, with the teachers, elements of
a praxeology for integrating the new perspectives on conic sections into teaching.
To determine how a CAS, which enables both symbolic manipulation and animation, can promote mathematical understanding by bridging experimental mathematics with deduction.
TIME 2008 27
The tasksThe tasks
interior
exterior
Is it possible to draw two tangents to the hyperbola from every point in the plane, which is not on the asymptotes? Do two tangents to the hyperbola from specific points touch the same branch?Justify your answers
Part (a)
x•y = 1
TIME 2008 28
Implement two slider bars to animate a pair of tangents drawn from P(X, Y) to hyperbola x•y = 1 and identify the loci of points from which:
(The expressions were defined, but not displayed)
No tangent can be drawn;
A single tangent can be drawn;
Two tangents to the same branch can be drawn;
Two tangents can be drawn, one to each branch.
Rate the need for students to prove algebraically the results; explain your pedagogical arguments.
No need 1 2 3 4 5 6 need
TIME 2008 29
Part b: Here are the expressions obtained by the CAS while designing the animation of tangents through a general point P(X, Y).
)X, Y ≠ 0(
TIME 2008 30
Follow through the derivation of the coordinates of the tangency points,
and use these expressions to prove your findings.
Please rate (and explain) again (from 1 to 6), the need for students to provide algebraic proof of the partition of the plane into four loci.
)X, Y ≠ 0(
TIME 2008 31
Part (a)
Part (b)
1-2 3-4 5-6
1-23 2 1
3-42
6 7
5-64 6 12
Distribution of teachers’ rating (n = 43)
HH
22
20
TIME 2008 32
Teacher H: Answer (part a)
Rating: 2
Explanation
Intersection of same/different color tangents
TIME 2008 33
Teacher H: Answer (part b)
Reflection: Symbol Sense
(1 1 X Y) ( 1 X Y 1) X Y
I , III
X X0 or 0
Y Y x1 x2 0 or x1 x2 0
Xx1 x2
Y
1 1 1 11 ,
1 1 1 12 ,
[ ]
[ ]
X Y X YTP
Y X
X Y X YTP
Y X
explanation of every linkexplanation of every link
Rating: 6
Reflection
Explanation
respectively
TIME 2008 34
PD Practice: Distribution of proofs and arguments given by the teachers
Focal objects for proof Arguments for need of proof
No proof 15'Origin' of tangents P(X,Y) 13Coordinates of tangency points 10Location of tangency points 5
Conviction 32Explanation 21 Convention 15Reflection 9
)H(
Relevance to classroom practice
TIME 2008 35
The study focused on:
The coordination of algebraic, graphical and geometrical representations to deal with problems related to tangents to conic sections using a CAS.
The possibility of building a praxeology for learning about proofs based on these problems.
The particular place of actions with slider bars in this praxeology.
TIME 2008 36
Slider bars demonstrate, in a dynamic way, the effect of a parameter, in an algebraic expression, on the shape of the related graph.
The algebraic expressions encapsulate the relationships between the different parameters. For approaching proof these relationships need to be unfolded by means of symbol sense.
DiscourseDiscourse
TIME 2008 37
DiscourseDiscourse
Such symbol sense motivates not only qualitative exploration of the effect of changing the value of the parameter of the geometric representation;
but also quantitative explanation of the cause of the change.
TIME 2008 38
Conclusion
Teacher professional development within curricular R&D(of story problems, tangents to conics,
and other topics) can help in the didactical transposition of new practices that incorporate technology.
TIME 2008 39
k = 1.7
A new practice: Viewing hyperbolasViewing hyperbolas
No tangent
Obtuse angles
Acute angles
2
1
2
1