PROCEEDINGS OF THE 19TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH IN UNDERGRADUATE MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
2016
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Effects of dynamic visualization software use on struggling students’ understanding of calculus: The case of David
Page: 1317
Using dynamic visualization software (DVS) may engage undergraduate students in calculus while providing instructors insight into student learning and understanding. Results presented derive from a qualitative study of nine students, each completing a series of four individual interviews. We discuss themes arising from interviews with David, a student exploring mathematical relationships with DVS who earns a C in calculus. David prefers to visualize when solving mathematical tasks and previous research suggests that such students, while not the ‘stars’ of their mathematics classroom, may have a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts that their non-visualizing peers. Using modified grounded theory techniques, we examine evidence of uncontrollable mental imagery, the need to refocus David on salient aspects of the animations, instances when David’s apparent conceptual knowledge is neither fully connected to nor supported by procedural knowledge, and David’s failure to transfer knowledge when DVS was not offered during assessment.