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A case study exploring students' conceptions of proof within a Year 10 Mathematics classroom
Mayes, Dawes
Mayes, Dawes
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2024-05-01
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Abstract
The difficulty in the transition to studying mathematics at university has been documented and studied by a number of previous authors. In this paper, one aspect of this transition – the study of mathematical proof – is examined in more depth through a case study of a high attaining Year 10 class. The results of this case study, whilst necessarily tentative, indicate that students exhibit a pattern of misconceptions regarding proof which is corroborated by larger-scale studies both nationally and internationally. Furthermore, data collected from student interviews during this case study is used to suggest a novel explanation of some of these misconceptions. This explanation connects mathematical proof to broader topics, such as maths anxiety, which potentially merits further investigation.
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Keywords (free text)
Mathematics, Proof, Misconceptions, Year 10, high attaining, anxiety, secondary education