TY  - UNPB
UR  - http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.538571
TI  - A phenomenographic study of students experiences of dimension
N2  - This study explored the experiences of dimension among young school children.
Dimension is a powerful mathematical construct that is rarely taught or researched
explicitly and not normally construed as something that is 'experienced'. The existing
literature showed that the notion of dimension could be investigated through various
perspectives: everyday life, scientific discourse, psychology, school curriculum and
teaching. From this exploration, I developed an orientation of what I might consider
to be an experience of dimension. A phenomenographic approach was followed, and
meanings of dimension were generated from 24 students during four situations. Data
were collected using clinical interviews accompanied with the design of tasks using
the software Elica, physical objects, the film Flatland, and the software Google
SketchUp in each of the situations respectively.
The meanings generated from the first three situations were compared and grouped
into theme categories. The aim of the fourth situation was to design an environment in
which we might witness experiences of dimension not observed before, by building
on preceding research on how modelling can foster the utility of mathematical
concepts. SketchUp and its dimensional tools helped the students to form situated
experiences about mathematical ideas relating to vectors and capacity. Dimensional
experience was categorised as Dimension as Action, Dimension as Material,
Dimension as Vector and Dimension as Capacity.
An analysis of the relationship between the categories pointed to the duality of the
passive or the dynamic way of experiencing dimension as well as looking within and
between dimensions. These characteristics of the dimensional experiences informed the notion of dimension in general as incorporating a dual nature, as an object but also
as a process. Conclusively, an examination of the four situations gave an insight into
what makes a window expressive both for the student as a means of 'seeing' the
phenomenon of dimension and for the researcher to 'see' how the student experiences
that phenomenon.
M1  - Doctoral
Y1  - 2011///
PB  - Institute of Education, University of London
A1  - Panorkou, Nicole
N1  - Thesis: (PhD) University of London Institute of Education, 2011.
ID  - discovery10020606
AV  - public
EP  - 450
ER  -