Students' feedback on teaching mathematics through the calculational method

• Type: Article in International Conference Proceedings Book
• Date: 2009

Authors

Ferreira, JF (Author) Other; Mendes, A (Author) Other

Conference proceedings International

Title: Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE

39th Annual Frontiers in Education Conference: Imagining and Engineering Future CSET Education, FIE 2009

San Antonio, TX, 18 October 2009 through 21 October 2009

Indexing

Scopus - 8 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00A-8Z1

DOI: 10.1109/fie.2009.5350478

Abstract (EN): This paper describes a study conducted at the University of Nottingham, whose goal was to assess whether the students registered on the first-year module "Mathematics for Computer Scientists" appreciate the calculational method. The study consisted of two parts: "Proof Reading" and "Problem Solving". The goal of "Proof Reading" was to determine what the students think of calculational proofs, compared with more conventional ones, and which are easier to verify; we also assessed how their opinions changed during the term. The purpose of "Problem Solving" was to determine if the methods taught have influenced the students' problem-solving skills. Frequent criticisms of our approach are that we are too formal and that the emphasis on syntactic manipulation hinders students' understanding. Nevertheless, the results show that most students prefer or understand better the calculational proofs. On the other hand, regarding the problem-solving questions, we observed that, in general, the students maintained their original solutions. © 2009 Crown.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific