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Promoting mathematical thinking in physics : some theoretical explorations in mechanics and their use in conceptual learning
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Type
Thesis
Author
Widjaja, Bernard Ricardo
Supervisor
Lee, Paul Choon Keat
Subramaniam, R.(Ramanathan)
Abstract
Mathematical thinking is a crucial aspect in the study of physics. In this thesis, we explored the extent of use of mathematical thinking in a few high school physics topics. The unique feature of this thesis is the blending of theoretical physics and physics education research. This thesis consists of two parts: theoretical explorations of selected topics in mechanics as well as educational studies on mathematical thinking in these topics. The explorations on the topics of momentum/collision and rotational motion were crucial in the construction of higher order thinking questions. These questions were implemented in a new 5-tier format, which seeks to excerpt students’ mathematical thinking in association with their conceptual understanding and certainty of response. The test instruments were also used in a pre/post-test design to measure the effectiveness of teaching interventions in the selected topics, where mathematical thinking was strongly emphasised and promoted. Due to the higher order thinking nature of the questions, we focused on high-performers in this educational study.
The findings in the educational aspect of this study showed that the students’ articulation of mathematical thinking was limited, though they performed well in the answer and reason tiers. This limitation was significantly overcome in the intervention lessons, where students were encouraged to develop the habit of performing mathematical thinking when approaching physics problems. The strong positive correlation between the extent of students’ mathematical thinking and their conceptual understanding was also shown in the interventions, suggesting the importance of early exposure to mathematical thinking in physics.
The findings in the educational aspect of this study showed that the students’ articulation of mathematical thinking was limited, though they performed well in the answer and reason tiers. This limitation was significantly overcome in the intervention lessons, where students were encouraged to develop the habit of performing mathematical thinking when approaching physics problems. The strong positive correlation between the extent of students’ mathematical thinking and their conceptual understanding was also shown in the interventions, suggesting the importance of early exposure to mathematical thinking in physics.
Date Issued
2020
Call Number
QC19.2 Wid
Date Submitted
2020