In this issue's "Classroom Notes" section, the following papers are discussed: (1) "Constructing a line segment whose length is equal to the measure of a given angle" (W. Jacob and T. J. Osler); (2) "Generating functions for the powers of Fibonacci sequences" (D. Terrana and H. Chen); (3) "Evaluation of mean and variance integrals without…

This paper reports an example of a situation in which university students had to solve geometrical problems presented to them dynamically using the interactive computerized environment of the "MicroWorlds Project Builder". In the process of the problem solving, the students used ten different solution strategies. The unsuccessful…

In this paper, results of a questionnaire about continuity of functions are analysed. The tested students attend Novi Sad grammar school. The aim of this test was to check the student's theoretical and visual knowledge of continuous functions at the end of their high school education. The questions were given with and without the graphs of…

The process of designing a learning system for an undergraduate business course in problem solving is described. The system includes pre-testing, problem solving strategies, providing practice and evaluating systems performance. (MN)

The merits of having students interact with the computer rather than use canned programs to solve problems are discussed. Examples are provided. (SD)

The author shows how the teaching of mathematics may be adapted so that it is "humanized." It is asserted that the standard mathematics program "...appeals to the intellect, but attaches no value to other human qualities such as emotions and ethical character." (MP)

Details of a course on mathematical modeling for graduate teachers of mathematics are presented. The rationale, objectives, course content, assessment methods are discussed along with several illustrative examples and difficulties encountered in finding appropriate problems. (MP)

In a future that is likely to be increasingly dominated by new technology, it is important to consider what mathematics is and how it might be taught. This article discusses these and related issues in the context of both universities and schools.

Computer operations involving complex numbers, essential in such applications as Fourier transforms or image processing, are normally performed in a "divide-and-conquer" approach dealing separately with real and imaginary parts. A number of proposals have treated complex numbers as a single unit but all have foundered on the problem of the…

A conference on the role of comprehensive problem solving in the secondary school curriculum made two major recommendations: (1) that a significant proportion of the curriculum be devoted to study of "real problems," and (2) that teachers be provided intellectual and physical resources for such a program. (SD)

An exercise in applied mathematics that focuses on belt drives that is suitable for senior secondary pupils is presented. Some comments on classroom use and student reactions to this lesson are included. (MP)

There is no common agreement on the meaning of the word "understand". However, there is agreement on what students should be able to do with material they understand. Bloom et al. discuss kinds of tasks a student should be able to do, provided that the student understands. In a similar way, Biggs and Collis provide a taxonomy intended to evaluate…

The aims of the article are: (1) to outline the general tenets of the "back to basics" movements; (2) to indicate how these tenets go counter to emerging research on hemispheric specialization; and (3) to suggest methods which are brain-compatible and likely to produce competent creative problem solvers. (Author/TG)

Develops and validates an instrument for determining student preferences for multiple representations of functions and establishes baseline data for future research. Students showed preferences for representations of functions which varied between contextualized and noncontextualized settings. Students' preferences for the two settings were more…

This study deals with the demand of a task. A theoretical background shows the difficulty of applying the idea of demand (as established in the literature) to the data. This has been confirmed in the preliminary study of this paper, which deals with the analysis of university examinations. Some factors that affect the demand of a task have been…