Approach to Realistic Mathematics Education in Teaching Calculus for High School Students: A Case of the Application of Derivatives

Nguyen Tien Da

doi:10.30935/ijpdll/11832

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to systematize some core principles of Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) theory in the design of mathematics teaching so that we can design a teaching model “applying derivatives” in the topic of calculus in high school. The feasibility of the model has been verified by us through two experimental lessons in class. With the positive results, we believe that the model we propose according to RME’s approach can improve the effectiveness of teaching and learning the topic of calculus at high schools in Vietnam today.

Highlights

The trend of applying mathematical knowledge to solve practical problems has become a top priority goal of many mathematics educations in the world, including Vietnam
The pioneer in the theory of “Realistic Mathematics Education” is Freudenthal (1991), who believes that “math teaching needs to be linked to situations related to everyday life, to society at large in order to be valid for learners.”
The model we proposed was conducted in a pedagogical experiment at a high school in Vietnam

Summary

Introduction

The trend of applying mathematical knowledge to solve practical problems has become a top priority goal of many mathematics educations in the world, including Vietnam. The thought of Freudenthal (1991) paved the way for the formation of a very developed theory of mathematics education in the Netherlands, called Real Mathematical Education (RME), with two basic principles that mathematics must be associated with reality and need to see mathematics as a human activity. When considering the reality principle of RME theory, we agree with the views of Freudenthal (1991). According to this principle, Freudenthal (1991) said that mathematics must be associated with reality, the problems posed to learners must be suitable to the life of society, the conveying material must be human activities. Building on the supposed foundation of RME-based learning design can help learners develop problem-solving competency

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Discussion

Conclusion