PROCEEDINGS OF THE 20TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH IN UNDERGRADUATE MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
2017
San Diego, California
Experts’ varied concept images of the symbol dx in integrals and differential equations
Page: 1317
The mathematical symbol “dx” is a symbol for which there can exist different views about its characteristics, purposes, and roles. We wished to see how experts viewed the dx in a variety of settings. We chose four mathematical contexts and interviewed four mathematics professors in order to understand their various concept images of the dx. While there was little agreement among the experts’ responses, most of them did have a strong concept image that remained consistent throughout their interviews, despite our attempts to create cognitive conflict between the different mathematical contexts. We conclude that the existence of a range in the experts’ opinions is noteworthy, and that further study should be conducted in order to more fully explore this range and any implications for instruction that may result from it.