The layering of mathematical interpretations through digital media

Abstract

How might understanding emerge when learners engage mathematical phenomena through digital technologies? This paper considers the ways children's mathematical thinking was influenced by their interpretations through various pedagogical discourses and how understanding emerged through those various filters. Current research into using digital technologies in mathematics education is predominantly positioned within two theoretical perspectives, semiotic mediation and the instrumental approach. Meanwhile, within a contemporary hermeneutic position, mathematical learning comprises a process of interpretation, where understanding is seen as a formative process as the learner views events from fresh, ever-evolving perspectives. Concepts are then seen in ongoing formation. This paper examines learning through a contemporary hermeneutic frame and the contention is that this opens opportunity for learning to be perceived in alternative ways. PreambleThis paper is concerned with the ways learning evolves as the learner engages mathematical tasks through digital pedagogical media. The learner's preconceptions of the pedagogical media, in conjunction with the opportunities and constraints offered by the media themselves, promote distinct pathways in the learning process. That is, mathematical activity is inseparable from the pedagogical device, as it were, derived as it is from a particular understanding of social organisation. Hence, the device will inevitably influence the mathematical ideas developed. This pedagogical device is more than an environment. It is Educ Stud Math (2012) 80:269-285

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