Abstract
This article introduces and explains a computer algebra system (CAS) wxMaxima for Calculus teaching and learning at the tertiary level. The didactic reasoning behind this approach is the need to implement an element of technology into classrooms to enhance students’ understanding of Calculus concepts. For many mathematics educators who have been using CAS, this material is of great interest, particularly for secondary teachers and university instructors who plan to introduce an alternative CAS into their classrooms. By highlighting both the strengths and limitations of the software, we hope that it will stimulate further debate not only among mathematics educators and software users but also also among symbolic computation and software developers.
Highlights
A computer algebra system (CAS) is a program that can solve mathematical problems by rearranging formulas and finding a formula that solves the problem, as opposed to just outputting the numerical value of the result
We present some examples of symbolic integration where wxMaxima fails to calculate in most of the cases in relation to results from other software
Mathematica is of special interest as the output of the corresponding indefinite integral does not agree with the formula given in [31]
Summary
A computer algebra system (CAS) is a program that can solve mathematical problems by rearranging formulas and finding a formula that solves the problem, as opposed to just outputting the numerical value of the result. We present some examples of symbolic integration where wxMaxima fails to calculate in most of the cases in relation to results from other software. Since wxMaxima is lightweight and fairly straightforward, simple Calculus calculations can be executed within seconds These include calculating the limit, finding the derivative of a function, and evaluating both definite and indefinite integrals. Mathematica and Matlab give the following outputs, respectively, which were simpler than the ones from the previous two software: All of these results correspond to an identical numerical value of approximately 2.819842. Mathematica is of special interest as the output of the corresponding indefinite integral does not agree with the formula given in [31] It reads as follows (some terms were rearranged): x4 − 3x2 + 6 − 5x4 + 5x2 + 4 dx.
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