ERIC Number: EJ1416598
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-8251
EISSN: EISSN-1945-2306
Available Date: N/A
Unitizing Predicates and Reasoning about the Logic of Proofs
Paul Christian Dawkins; Kyeong Hah Roh
Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, v55 n2 p76-95 2024
This article offers the construct "unitizing predicates" to name mental actions important for students' reasoning about logic. To unitize a predicate is to conceptualize (possibly complex or multipart) conditions as a single property that every example has or does not have, thereby partitioning a universal set into examples and nonexamples. This explains the cognitive work that supports students to unify various statements with the same logical form, which is conventionally represented by replacing parts of statements with logical variables p or P(x). Using data from a constructivist teaching experiment with two undergraduate students, we document barriers to unitizing predicates and demonstrate how this activity influences students' ability to render mathematical statements and proofs as having the same logical structure.
Descriptors: Thinking Skills, Logical Thinking, Mathematical Logic, Validity, Undergraduate Students, Barriers, Mathematical Concepts, Syntax, Semantics, Computer Science, Undergraduate Study
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. 1906 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191. Tel: 800-235-7566; Tel: 703-620-9840; Fax: 703-476-2570; e-mail: publicationsdept@nctm.org; Web site: https://pubs.nctm.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: 1954768; 1954613
Author Affiliations: N/A