Coordinating formal and informal aspects of mathematics in a computer based learning environment

Abstract

The introduction of educational technology to school classes promises – through the students’ active engagement with mathematical concepts – the creation of teaching and learning opportunities in mathematics. However, the way technological tools are used in the teaching practice as a means of human thought and action remains an unsettled matter as far as the pedagogical consequences are concerned. In this article, it is intended to describe a theoretical framework for the use of technology, directed towards the coordination of formal and informal aspects of mathematics, by introducing the concept of ‘convergent representation sequence’, the ‘limit’ of which will be the mathematical object it is intended to approach.