Abstract:
This study explored engineering students' understanding of the techniques of
integration in calculus. There were 30 first year engineering students who
participated in the project. The concepts were covered as part of a
mathematics course at a university of technology in KwaZulu-Natal, South
Africa. Activity sheets, constructed with tasks based on integration were
administered to the participants. Their written responses, which were used to
identify the mental constructions of these concepts, were analysed using the
three worlds of mathematics framework and interviews were carried out to
clarify the written responses. The discussions and written work indicated that
students seemed to be operating in the conceptual-embodied world of
cognitive development and students displayed the ability to manipulate
symbols and embedded procedures. The findings raised some didactical
implications for higher education and also provided applications of the three
worlds of mathematics framework.
