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Re: The audience for Mathematica (Was: Show doesn't work inside Do

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg102149] Re: The audience for Mathematica (Was: Show doesn't work inside Do
• From: David Bailey <dave at removedbailey.co.uk>
• Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 05:46:11 -0400 (EDT)
• References: <h4m4ca$ecg$1@smc.vnet.net> <h4p3g1$itm$1@smc.vnet.net>

Helen Read wrote:

> 
> You can teach them both at the same time, using one to reinforce the other.
> 
> I teach my (university) calculus students *calculus*, using Mathematica
> 
> - as a tool for graphing and visualization
> - as a tool for carrying out numerical calculations
> - to check work done by hand (integrals, derivatives, algebra, etc.)
> - to carry out such work (integrals, derivatives, algebra, etc.) after 
> we have done the thinking / setting up
> - for discovery learning, where the students can explore and learn by 
> looking at examples, and build or re-inforce concepts
> 

Your teaching style sounds really effective - certainly in comparison 
with the courses I attended as a student - in the days of chalk!

My only query is, how do you set homework problems where you want the 
student to solve the problem by hand - say an integral that requires a 
substitution. Some students will inevitably get the answer with 
Mathematica, and then fill in the intermediate steps!

David Bailey
http://www.dbaileyconsultancy.co.uk

• Follow-Ups:
  • Re: Re: The audience for Mathematica (Was: Show doesn't
    • From: Murray Eisenberg <murray@math.umass.edu>