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The Construction of Mathematical Meanings: Connecting the Visual with the Symbolic

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Abstract

In this paper, we explore the relationship between learners' actions, visualisations and the means by which these are articulated. We describe a microworld, Mathsticks, designed to help students construct mathematical meanings by forging links between the rhythms of their actions and the visual and corresponding symbolic representations they developed. Through a case study of two students interacting with Mathsticks, we illustrate a view of mathematics learning which places at its core the medium of expression, and the building of connections between different mathematisations rather than ascending to hierarchies of decontextualisation.

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Noss, R., Healy, L. & Hoyles, C. The Construction of Mathematical Meanings: Connecting the Visual with the Symbolic. Educational Studies in Mathematics 33, 203–233 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1002943821419

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