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Letter from the Editor

Journal of the ACMS 2007 Issue

Motivating Students in their Study of Mathematics
Johan H. de Klerk, North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus), South Africa

Keywords: History of mathematics; history of technology; mathematics education

Abstract: One can argue that some subject fields—Mathematics in the present case—could be viewed as separate entities, divorced from anything else in reality. But one can also argue that Mathematics could be viewed in a setting of ever-expanding contextual frames, such as those of history, science, society, nature and religion. As lecturer of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, I adhere to this latter viewpoint. In this discussion, attention will be paid in particular to the contextual frame of history.

It is often argued in literature that it could be to the benefit of students in Mathematics if the history of the subject could be integrated as a tool in teaching Mathematics (and also, in a wider sense, in other natural science subjects). Unfortunately, there is, at least in my home country, South Africa, a negative view among younger people with regard to History (as a subject field) and to the history of academic subjects. Therefore, I have embarked in my Mathematics classes on a road of not only discussing historical aspects of the broad field of mathematics, but also of technology. I have found that my students—many of whom are engineering students—are much more motivated when the history of mathematics and technology is related to the course material, and that they respond positively to this pedagogical tool. In this discussion, attention will be paid to some background and pedagogical matters as well as to students’ reactions.

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