Artificial intelligence, computational thinking, and mathematics education

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI), computational thinking (CT), and mathematics education (ME) for young students (K-8). Specifically, it focuses on three key elements that are common to AI, CT and ME: agency, modeling of phenomena and abstracting concepts beyond specific instances. Design/methodology/approach The theoretical framework of this paper adopts a sociocultural perspective where knowledge is constructed in interactions with others (Vygotsky, 1978). Others also refers to the multiplicity of technologies that surround us, including both the digital artefacts of our new media world, and the human methods and specialized processes acting in the world. Technology is not simply a tool for human intention. It is an actor in the cognitive ecology of immersive humans-with-technology environments (Levy, 1993, 1998) that supports but also disrupts and reorganizes human thinking (Borba and Villarreal, 2005). Findings There is fruitful overlap between AI, CT and ME that is of value to consider in mathematics education. Originality/value Seeing ME through the lenses of other disciplines and recognizing that there is a significant overlap of key elements reinforces the importance of agency, modeling and abstraction in ME and provides new contexts and tools for incorporating them in classroom practice.

Artificial Intelligence-Enabled Predictive Insights for Ameliorating Global Malnutrition: A Human-Centric AI-Thinking Approach

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Participant or spectator? Comprehending the willingness of faculty to use intelligent tutoring systems in the artificial intelligence era

“…AI is an embranchment of computer science which aims to develop theory, method and technique to simulate, extend and improve human intelligence (Raj & Seamans, 2019; Yang et al ., 2019). The potential impact of AI on human society is tremendous (Gadanidis, 2017). In recent years, AI has developed rapidly and come to be widely used in many areas such as health care, pollution control, transportation, logistics, online customer service and decision making (Zahraee, Assadi, & Saidur, 2016).…”

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Problem Solving in the Context of Computational Thinking

“…Mathematical ability is considered a core factor that predicts students' ability to learn (Grover & Pea, 2013). Some researchers put forward convincing arguments that mathematical thinking plays an important role in CT (Gadanidis, 2017;Rambally, 2017;Son & Lee, 2016) because solving math problems is a construction process (Benakli, Kostadinov, Satyanarayana, & Singh, 2017;Lockwood, DeJarnette, Asay, & Thomas, 2016;Merle, 2016). The construction process to complete this solution requires an analytical perspective to solve unique and fundamental problems for students.…”