Mathematics in engineering programs: what teachers with different academic and professional backgrounds bring to the table. An institutional analysis

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we examine how differences in the academic and professional backgrounds of engineering teachers shape their personal relationship to the use of mathematics in engineering practices, and whether these differences affect some of their practices. The analyses herein are based on an institutional perspective and employ Chevallard's anthropological theory of the didactic (ATD). We interviewed two teachers in an engineering programme to identify specific elements of their practice that could be attributable to the mobilisation of knowledge and skills derived from their distinct academic backgrounds and experience. The results indicate that the teachers mobilise different tasks, techniques, and technologies in many of their practices, and that they take different approaches to using mathematics and applying rigour.

KEYWORDS:

• Engineering education
• university teacher education
• anthropological theory of the didactic
• personal relationship
• didactic praxeology

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank T1 and T2 for their participation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Alejandro S. González-Martín http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1024-0940

Gisela Hernandes-Gomes http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6110-192X

Additional information

Funding

The research presented here was funded by grant 435-2016-0526 of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) through Canada's Insight program.