Learn from the Masters

by Frank J. Swetz (Editor)

This book is for high school and college teachers who want to know how they can use the history of mathematics as a pedagogical tool to help their students construct their own knowledge of mathematics. Often, a historical development of a particular topic is the best way to present a mathematical topic, but teachers may not have the time to do the research needed to present the material. This book provides its readers with historical ideas and insights which can be immediately applied in the classroom. The book is divided into two sections: the first on the use of history in high school mathematics, and the second on its use in university mathematics. The articles are diverse, covering fields such as trigonometry, mathematical modeling, calculus, linear algebra, vector analysis, and celestial mechanics. Also included are articles of a somewhat philosophical nature, which give general ideas on why history should be used in teaching and how it can be used in various special kinds of courses. Each article contains a bibliography to guide the reader to further reading on the subject.

Genres: Mathematics

311 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

For most of my life, I have taught mathematics. This task has spanned audiences from young preschool children to graduate teachers and involved cultural and social settings from the inner city schools of New York to those of several developing countries of Southeast Asia. In all these ventures, I have been troubled by the perceived difficulties people associate with the learning and teaching of mathematics. My solution to this situation has been to try to “humanize” the learning of mathematics, that is, to more closely associate it with its historic and cultural origins and its purposes. In my books, I attempt to reveal these often unknown but fascinating aspects of the subject and to promote a clearer understanding of mathematics as a human endeavor, its uses and potentials.