Colloquium Series

Student Obstacles and Historical Obstacles to Foundational Concepts of Calculus

Robert Ely Mathematics Education Candidate University of Wisconsin

240 university calculus students were given a questionnaire about foundational calculus concepts: function, limit, continuity, and the real number line. Based on their responses, and follow-up interviews with a few students, they were categorized according to the epistemological obstacles they displayed. I found that several of the clusters of obstacles commonly co-occurring in students were also prominent in the history of calculus. This indicates that one key to understanding the parallels between student thinking and historical thinking lies in shared epistemological predispositions, such as the disposition toward smooth motion or toward algebraic simplicity. These predispositions support, but do not strictly constrain, the multiple connected conceptions observed in the study.

Friday, 2 February 2007 3:10 p.m. in Math 109

Spring 2007 Colloquium Schedule         Mathematical Sciences | The University of Montana