RUME 25
2023
Omaha, Nebraska
The Role of Language in Undergraduate Mathematics: Linear Independence and Limit
Page: 1179
As English is increasingly seen as the language of mathematics instruction in the United States and the world, it becomes important to interrogate the role of the English language in mathematical understanding. This article investigates this question in relation to linear (in)dependence and limit through clinical interviews with undergraduate students. Preliminary results indicated a relationship between students’ conceptual understanding of linear (in)dependence and their ability to connect their mathematical and non-mathematical uses of the term (in)dependent. Moreover, students’ unproductive conceptions of limit appeared to be influenced by non-mathematical meanings of limit.