Differences between how Undergraduate Students Define Geometric Solids and what their Lecturers Expect from them through the Lens of the Theory of Commognition
Verónica Martín-Molina 1 * , Alfonso J. González-Regaña 1 , Rocío Toscano 1 , José María Gavilán-Izquierdo 1
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1 Departamento de Didáctica de las Matemáticas, Universidad de Sevilla, SPAIN* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Undergraduate students’ engagement with mathematical discourse when defining geometric solids is analysed and compared with what their lecturers expect them to do. The theory of commognition is adopted as the theoretical framework, which permits the characterisation and comparison of their discursive activities, and may lead to the identification of potential commognitive conflicts. The participants were forty-five undergraduate students (primary pre-service teachers) and their lecturers. A worksheet with questions about defining geometric solids was used as a data collection instrument. The students, in small groups, had to discuss and write their answers, and the lecturers were asked what they expected from their students. Results show three main areas of mismatch between students’ engagement in mathematical discourse and what their lecturers expected from them. There is no clear consensus across the students on how to define or on what a definition is or on which criterion to use when selecting a definition.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, 2020, Volume 16, Issue 12, Article No: em1917

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/9159

Publication date: 14 Nov 2020

Article Views: 1818

Article Downloads: 1032

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