ERIC Number: ED658354
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Epistemological Obstacles Related to Treating Logical Implications as Actions: The Case of Mary
Anderson Norton; Rachel Arnold; Joseph Antonides; Vladislav Kokushkin
North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (45th, Reno, NV, Oct 1-4, 2023)
Understanding how students reason with logical implication is essential for supporting students' construction of increasingly powerful ways of reasoning in proofs-based mathematics courses. We report on the results of an NSF-funded case study with a mathematics major enrolled in an introductory proofs course. We investigate the epistemological obstacles that she experienced and how they might relate to her treatment of logical implications as actions. Evidence shows that an action conception may pose challenges when students transform or quantify implications and may contribute to erroneous assumptions of biconditionality. Our report on available ways of operating with logical implications as actions is a first step in designing instructional tasks that leverage students' existing reasoning skills to support their continued development. [For the complete proceedings, see ED658295.]
Descriptors: Thinking Skills, Mathematical Logic, Validity, Introductory Courses, Barriers, Epistemology, Interaction, Undergraduate Students, Majors (Students), Mathematics Education, Mathematics Instruction
North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. e-mail: pmena.steeringcommittee@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.pmena.org/
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: 2141626