Overview
- Directs attention of educational researchers to newest developments in the philosophy and practice of mathematics and their relevance
- Critically examines recent literature in the philosophy of mathematics on mathematicians’ methods for devising and judging proof
- Creates a much needed bridge between the discipline of philosophy of mathematics and mathematics education
- Demonstrates that mathematical practice has lessons for instructional practice
- Stresses the relevance of pragmatic dimensions of mathematics for current philosophy of mathematics
- Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras
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Table of contents (17 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Reflections on the Nature and Teaching of Proof
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Front Matter
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Keywords
About this book
In the four decades since Imre Lakatos declared mathematics a "quasi-empirical science," increasing attention has been paid to the process of proof and argumentation in the field -- a development paralleled by the rise of computer technology and the mounting interest in the logical underpinnings of mathematics. Explanantion and Proof in Mathematics assembles perspectives from mathematics education and from the philosophy and history of mathematics to strengthen mutual awareness and share recent findings and advances in their interrelated fields. With examples ranging from the geometrists of the 17th century and ancient Chinese algorithms to cognitive psychology and current educational practice, contributors explore the role of refutation in generating proofs, the varied links between experiment and deduction, the use of diagrammatic thinking in addition to pure logic, and the uses of proof in mathematics education (including a critique of "authoritative" versus "authoritarian" teaching styles).
A sampling of the coverage:
- The conjoint origins of proof and theoretical physics in ancient Greece.
- Proof as bearers of mathematical knowledge.
- Bridging knowing and proving in mathematical reasoning.
- The role of mathematics in long-term cognitive development of reasoning.
- Proof as experiment in the work of Wittgenstein.
- Relationships between mathematical proof, problem-solving, and explanation.
Explanation and Proof in Mathematics is certain to attract a wide range of readers, including mathematicians, mathematics education professionals, researchers, students, and philosophers and historians of mathematics.
Reviews
From the reviews:
“The origin of this book is the conference Explanation and Proof in Mathematics: Philosophical and Educational Perspectives (Essen, 2006) and it reflects different views from three fields: mathematics educators, philosophy of mathematics and history of mathematics. … The authors and editors made a fine job providing a useful resource for all interested in proofs and proving in mathematical education.” (Claudi Alsina, Zentralblatt MATH, Vol. 1196, 2010)Editors and Affiliations
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Explanation and Proof in Mathematics
Book Subtitle: Philosophical and Educational Perspectives
Editors: Gila Hanna, Hans Niels Jahnke, Helmut Pulte
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0576-5
Publisher: Springer New York, NY
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Education (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag US 2010
Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4419-0575-8Published: 17 December 2009
Softcover ISBN: 978-1-4899-8273-5Published: 26 November 2014
eBook ISBN: 978-1-4419-0576-5Published: 04 December 2009
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: VIII, 294
Topics: Learning & Instruction, Popular Science in Education, Mathematics, general, Mathematics Education, Philosophy of Education