Visualisation of Selected Mathematics Concepts with Computers - the Case of Torricelli's Method and Statistics

Abstract

Visual imagery has been an effective tool to communicate ideas connected with basic mathematics concepts since the dawn of mankind. The development of educational visualisation technology allows these ideas to be demonstrated with the help of some educational software. Inthis paper, we specifically consider the use of GeoGebra, a free, open-source educational application developed by an international consortium of mathematics and statistics educators, but other educational software could also be used for the same visualisation tasks. <br/> In this study, we present Torricelli’s method for measuring the area under arc of cycloid as an example of using GeoGebra to visualise he area of planar figures. This kind of introduction is suitable for secondary schools and for training pre-service teachers. <br/> We will also show how GeoGebra can be used to develop students’ understanding of representing data (i.e. the topic from statistics education). While students explore the visualisation of data, GeoGebra allows them to create and explore representations while building the understanding that is required for analysing data and drawing figural conclusions from graphical representations.