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ERIC Number: ED489556
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jul
Pages: 8
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Mathematicians and the Selection Task
Inglis, Matthew; Simpson, Adrian
International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education,
28th, Bergen, Norway, July 14-18, 2004
Learning to think logically and present ideas in a logical fashion
has always been considered a central part of becoming a
mathematician. In this paper we compare the performance of three
groups: mathematics undergraduates, mathematics staff and history
undergraduates (representative of a "general population"). These
groups were asked to solve Wason's selection task, a seemingly
straightforward logical problem. Given the assumption that logic
plays a major role in mathematics, the results were surprising: less
than a third of students and less than half of staff gave the correct
answer. Moreover, mathematicians seem to make different mistakes from
the most common mistake noted in the literature. The implications of
these results for our understanding of mathematical thought are
discussed with reference to the role of error checking. [For complete
proceedings, see ED489538.]
Descriptors: Logical Thinking, Mathematics Education, Undergraduate
Students, College Mathematics, History Instruction, Higher Education,
Problem Solving, Mathematics Teachers
International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, 35
Aandwind Street, Kirstenhof, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa. Web site:
http://igpme.org.
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
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