CBMS Issues in Mathematics Education – serie

The field of research in collegiate mathematics education has grown rapidly over the past twenty-five years. Many people are convinced that improvement in mathematics education can only come with a greater understanding of what is involved when a student tries to learn mathematics and how pedagogy can be more directly related to the learning process. Today there is a substantial body of work and a growing group of researchers addressing both basic and applied issues of mathematics education at the collegiate level.This second volume in ""Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education"" begins with a paper that attends to methodology and closes with a list of questions. The lead-off paper describes a distinctive approach to research on key concepts in the undergraduate mathematics curriculum. This approach is distinguished from others in several ways, especially its integration of research and instruction. The papers in this volume exhibit a large diversity in methods and purposes, ranging from historical studies, to theoretical examinations of the role of gender in mathematics education, to practical evaluations of particular practices and circumstances. As in RCME I, this volume poses a list of questions to the reader related to undergraduate mathematics education. The eighteen questions were raised at the first Oberwolfach Conference in Undergraduate Mathematics Education, which was held in the fall of 1995, and are related to both research and curriculum.

This volume is an outgrowth of a series of programs organized by the Mathematicians and Education Reform (MER) Network between 1990 and 1993. These programs explored the ways in which the mathematical sciences community has responded to educational challenges. Mathematicians who had made a serious commitment to educational reform served as role models, inspiring others to contribute their efforts to this important work. The discussions raised many questions and highlighted many insights about the nature of educational reform and how the mathematics research community can contribute to it.The papers in this volume present perspectives on the future of these efforts, varied examples of how individual mathematicians have become involved in educational reform, and case studies of how the community is responding to the need for reform. Viewing the mathematics culture through the prism of his or her own experience and encounters, each author contributes a valuable piece for the reader to consider in trying to envision what the large picture will be as mathematics education continues to evolve. This series is published in cooperation with the Mathematical Association of America.

Volume III of Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education (RCME) presents state-of-the-art research on understanding, teaching, and learning mathematics at the post-secondary level. This volume contains information on methodology and research concentrating on these areas of student learning: Problem solving - included here are three different articles analyzing aspects of Schoenfeld's undergraduate problem-solving instruction. The articles provide new detail and insight on a well-known and widely discussed course taught by Schoenfeld for many years. Understanding concepts - these articles feature a variety of methods used to examine students' understanding of the concept of a function and selected concepts from calculus. The conclusions presented offer unique and interesting perspectives on how students learn concepts.Understanding proofs - this section provides insight from a distinctly psychological framework. Researchers examine how existing practices can foster certain weaknesses. They offer ways to recognize and interpret students' proof behaviors and suggest alternative practices and curricula to build more powerful schemes. The section concludes with a focused look at using diagrams in the course of proving a statement.

This fourth volume of ""Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education"" (""RCME IV"") reflects the themes of student learning and calculus. Included are overviews of calculus reform in France and in the U.S. and large-scale and small-scale longitudinal comparisons of students enrolled in first-year reform courses and in traditional courses. The work continues with detailed studies relating students' understanding of calculus and associated topics. Direct focus is then placed on instruction and student comprehension of courses other than calculus, namely abstract algebra and number theory. The volume concludes with a study of a concept that overlaps the areas of focus, quantifiers. The book clearly reflects the trend towards a growing community of researchers who systematically gather and distill data regarding collegiate mathematics' teaching and learning.

This book is the first to focus specifically on doctoral programs in mathematics education. It reflects the proceedings of a National Conference on Doctoral Programs in Mathematics Education (Lake Ozark, MO) which was sponsored by the National Science Foundation. This conference was proceeded by a comprehensive survey of programs conducted over the preceding year. The meeting was designed to generate dialog regarding the nature of current doctoral programs in mathematics education, to discuss ways to strengthen such programs, and to detail suggestions and guidelines for faculty engaged in restructuring an existing program or in creating a new one.This volume outlines the results of the conference organized by the following sections: Background, which includes papers providing different perspectives of doctoral programs in mathematics education in the U.S. and abroad; Core Components, which highlights elements in common to most doctoral mathematic programs, including course work, research, education, and teaching; Related Issues, which addresses the challenges of recruiting, organizing new programs, and restructuring existing programs; Reactions and Reflections, which contains the thoughts of recent graduates regarding their doctoral programs and observations on the importance of integrating policy issues into doctoral programs; and, Ideas for Action, which provides a brief synthesis of the conference and offers suggestions for future action to improve future doctoral programs.

Progress in mathematics frequently occurs first by studying particular examples and then by generalizing the patterns that have been observed into far-reaching theorems. Similarly, in teaching mathematics one often employs examples to motivate a general principle or to illustrate its use. This volume uses the same idea in the context of learning how to teach: by analyzing particular teaching situations, one can develop broadly applicable teaching skills useful for the professional mathematician. These teaching situations are the Case Studies of the title. Just as a good mathematician seeks both to understand the details of a particular problem and to put it in a broader context, the examples presented here are chosen to offer a serious set of detailed teaching issues and to afford analysis from a broad perspective. Each case raises a variety of pedagogical and communication issues that may be explored either individually or in a group facilitated by a faculty member.The methodology of Case Studies is widely used in areas such as business and law. The consideration of the mathematics cases presented here will help readers to develop teaching skills for their own classrooms. See the faculty edition at ""Teaching Mathematics in Colleges and Universities: Case Studies for Today's Classroom, Faculty Edition"".

Now is a time of great interest in mathematics education. Student performance, curriculum, and teacher education are the subjects of much scrutiny and debate. Studies on the mathematical knowledge of prospective and practicing U. S. teachers suggest ways to improve their mathematical educations. It is often assumed that because the topics covered in K-12 mathematics are so basic, they should be easy to teach. However, research in mathematics education has shown that to teach well, substantial mathematical understanding is necessary--even to teach whole-number arithmetic. Prospective teachers need a solid understanding of mathematics so that they can teach it as a coherent, reasoned activity and communicate its elegance and power. This volume gathers and reports current thinking on curriculum and policy issues affecting the mathematical education of teachers. It considers two general themes: (1) the intellectual substance in school mathematics; and (2) the special nature of the mathematical knowledge needed for teaching. The underlying study was funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The mathematical knowledge needed for teaching is quite different from that required by students pursuing other mathematics-related professions. Material here is geared toward stimulating efforts on individual campuses to improve programs for prospective teachers. This report contains general recommendations for all grades and extensive discussions of the specific mathematical knowledge required for teaching elementary, middle, and high-school grades, respectively. It is also designed to marshal efforts in the mathematical sciences community to back important national initiatives to improve mathematics education and to expand professional development opportunities. The book will be an important resource for mathematics faculty and other parties involved in the mathematical education of teachers. Information for our distributors: This series is published in cooperation with the Mathematical Association of America.

This fifth volume of ""Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education"" (RCME) presents state-of-the-art research on understanding, teaching, and learning mathematics at the post-secondary level. The articles in RCME are peer-reviewed for two major features: advancing our understanding of collegiate mathematics education, and readability by a wide audience of practicing mathematicians interested in issues affecting their own students. This is not a collection of scholarly arcana, but a compilation of useful and informative research regarding the ways our students think about and learn mathematics.The volume begins with a study from Mexico of the cross-cutting concept of variable followed by two studies dealing with aspects of calculus reform. The next study frames its discussion of students' conceptions of infinite sets using the psychological work of Efraim Fischbein on (mathematical) intuition. This is followed by two papers concerned with APOS theory and other frameworks regarding mathematical understanding. The final study provides some preliminary results on student learning using technology when lessons are delivered via the Internet. Whether specialists in education or mathematicians interested in finding out about the field, readers will obtain new insights about teaching and learning and will take away ideas they can use.

Compiled and edited by the directors of the Mathematicians and Education Reform (MER) Network, this book contains papers by speakers and participants in MER workshops and special sessions over the last three years. Like the first volume, which also grew out of an MER workshop, this book is organized into two sections, Projects and Issues and Reactions providing a balance between descriptions of successful existing projects and more in-depth discussion of problems and issues in mathematics education reform. With contributions by some of the major leaders in this area today, this book is of interest to a broad segment of the mathematical sciences community.

This is the latest volume in the CBMS (Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences) Issues in Mathematics Education series, which seeks to stimulate the flow of information among mathematical scientists, mathematics educators, and mathematics teachers about innovative efforts to revitalize the teaching of the mathematical sciences at all levels. The first part of this volume is devoted to detailed descriptions of a wide variety of educational projects undertaken by mathematicians. These descriptions focus for the most part on substantial enterprises with an investment of several years and systematic review and evaluation. By contrast, the second part of the book centers on ideas that could be put into action at a modest level as a springboard for longer term projects. This book is intended to stimulate and inspire mathematical scientists to pursue educational work. In addition, those who have already ventured into educational activities and may be ready for deeper involvement will also benefit from this exploration of what can be done.

The field of research in collegiate mathematics education has grown rapidly over the past twenty-five years. Many people are convinced that improvement in mathematics education can only come with a greater understanding of what is involved when a student tries to learn mathematics and how pedagogy can be more directly related to the learning process. Today there is a substantial body of work and a growing group of researchers addressing both basic and applied issues of mathematics education at the collegiate level.This volume is testimony to the growth of the field. The intention is to publish volumes on this topic annually, doing more or less as the level of growth dictates. The introductory articles, survey papers, and current research that appear in this first issue convey some aspects of the state of the art. The book is aimed at researchers in collegiate mathematics education and teachers of college-level mathematics courses who may find ideas and results that are useful to them in their practice of teaching, as well as the wider community of scholars interested in the intellectual issues raised by the problem of learning mathematics.

University-level mathematicians--whether focused on research or teaching--recognize the need to develop effective ways for teaching undergraduate mathematics. The Mathematics Department of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology hosted a symposium on effective teaching, featuring internationally distinguished researchers deeply interested in teaching and mathematics educators possessing established reputations for developing successful teaching techniques. This book stems from that symposium.

The sixth volume of Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education presents state-of-the-art research on understanding, teaching, and learning mathematics at the postsecondary level. The articles advance our understanding of collegiate mathematics education while being readable by a wide audience of mathematicians interested in issues affecting their own students. This is a collection of useful and informative research regarding the ways our students think about and learn mathematics. The volume opens with studies on students' experiences with calculus reform and on the effects of concept-based calculus instruction. The next study uses technology and the van Hiele framework to help students construct concept images of sequential convergence. The volume continues with studies on developing and assessing specific competencies in real analysis, on introductory complex analysis, and on using geometry in teaching and learning linear algebra. It closes with a study on the processes used in proof construction and another on the transition to graduate studies in mathematics. Whether they are specialists in education or mathematicians interested in finding out about the field, readers will obtain new insights about teaching and learning and will take away ideas that they can use. Information for our distributors: This series is published in cooperation with the Mathematical Association of America.

Mathematics education in the United States will be shaped at all levels by those who hold doctorates in the field. As professors, they influence the structure and content of university programs in mathematics education, where future teachers are prepared. As scholars, they engage in research and lead us to a deeper and better understanding of the field. This book is a detailed study of doctoral programs in mathematics education. It stems from a national conference sponsored by the National Science Foundation. It involved participants from across the United States, as well as Brazil, Japan, Norway, and Spain, and followed up the work of an earlier conference, published in One Field, Many Paths: U.S. Doctoral Programs in Mathematics Education (Volume 9 in this series). The book, as was the conference, is organized around several major questions, including: What is the core knowledge for doctoral students in mathematics education? What are the important issues and challenges in delivering doctoral programs? What can we learn about doctoral preparation by comparisons with other countries?What effect would accreditation of doctoral programs in mathematics education have on the profession? What next steps need to be addressed now? The book documents the wide range of ideas about doctoral programs in mathematics education and their varied features. It provides readers with current visions and issues concerning doctoral studies in the field and serves as a reminder that establishing stewards of the discipline of mathematics education is a continuing challenge.

The present volume of Research in Collegiate Mathematics Education, like previous volumes in this series, reflects the importance of research in mathematics education at the collegiate level. The editors in this series encourage communication between mathematicians and mathematics educators, and as pointed out by the International Commission of Mathematics Instruction (ICMI), much more work is needed in concert with these two groups. Indeed, editors of RCME are aware of this need and the articles published in this series are in line with that goal. Nine papers constitute this volume. The first two examine problems students experience when converting a representation from one particular system of representations to another. The next three papers investigate students learning about proofs. In the next two papers, the focus is instructor knowledge for teaching calculus. The final two papers in the volume address the nature of "conception" in mathematics. Whether they are specialists in education or mathematicians interested in finding out about the field, readers will obtain new insights about teaching and learning and will take away ideas that they can use.This series is published in cooperation with the Mathematical Association of America.