Creating small simulations with JSXGraph and Stack to enhance learning activities
Luise Stromeyer
Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Abstract
Points, lines, circles, graphs … JSXGraph has many elements that immediately make us think of mathematical constructions and relationships. Many teaching and learning activities are and were created with it and many things can be experienced by learners, which are otherwise difficult to convey.
At the Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (HTW) Berlin these possibilities are also used in inner-mathematical contexts in the mathematics lectures for engineers.
But do WE have to limit ourselves to these inner-mathematical issues? Isn’t there more possible? Students in engineering courses often want more practical relevance in the mathematics lecture. They want to know how to apply the mathematics they are learning. The connection and benefits of mathematics for engineering sciences are often not recognized and motivation for the subject decreases.
To counteract this, we at HTW Berlin are developing application-related tasks for mathematics lectures as part of the sub-project “Innovative digital MINT Curricula” (project “Curriculum Innovation Hub” funded by the “Innovation in der Hochschullehre” foundation). One challenge is, to develop meaningful applications for relevant and complex problems, so that 1st semester students can work with them. In my talk, I will use an example to show how JSXGraph and Stack can be used to embed applications in such a way that students can be well taken into the application context without long texts, but through small simulations.
In addition to the basic possibility of using JSXGraph beyond its mathematical contexts, I show how I use working with classes and randomized lists to effectively create as many different examples as possible, even in the context of simulations.