Abstract

With respect to constructivist views on the nature of mathematical knowledge and the genesis of heuristic processes in the mind of the learner, the abundance of problems, richness of ideas and students' possibilities and power to develop intuition have to be redefined by utilizing versatile technological tools. This paper highlights how link between creative production and conceptual understanding may be promoted by use of a progressive pocket computer. It focuses on learning based upon the interplay of different representations of mathematical objects, the use of which would improve problem solving abilities as well as the understanding of underlying mathematical concepts. We describe this kind of learning and examine its empirical values by using a modification of a classical extreme value problem.

Keywords: Computer-based learning, conceptual knowledge, constructivism, heuristics, mathematics education, problem solving, procedural knowledge, representation, visualization.

Pages:  61$-$70     

Volume  VII ,  Issue  2 ,  2004