RUME 28
2026
Alexandria, Virginia
Students’ Initial Goals, Beliefs and Conceptions of Proof in an Introduction to Proof Course
Page: 1156
The shift to proof-based mathematics in university programs often takes place in an introduction to proof (ITP) course. Literature exists describing the nature of these courses and some of the difficulties students experience in the course, but we know little about students’ goal, beliefs, and conceptions of proof at the beginning of an ITP course (David & Zazkis, 2020; Bleiler-Baxter & Pair, 2017). Seven students were interviewed during the first two weeks of their ITP course. These same students are participating in a longitudinal study examining how ITP students’ goals, beliefs, and engagement patterns evolve during an ITP course. Students were uniformly capable of providing a description of proof compatible with those commonly used in ITP courses, though students’ ability to construct proof was varied. Students could identify components of proof writing that were different from other writing (e.g. the use of the word “or”). Students’ goal orientations were seen to be malleable at the beginning of the semester, with most students adopting a learning goal orientation (Dweck & Leggett, 1988).