How One Physics Teacher Changed His Algebraic Thinking

Author(s): Marsha P. Nicol

Source: The Mathematics Teacher, Vol. 90, No. 2 (FEBRUARY 1997), pp. 86-89
Published by: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27970086
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How One Physics Teacher
Changed His Algebraic Thinking
y his own admission, Mike Smith, Worthington
Christian High School's physics teacher, has dra
matically changed his concept of mathematics.
Although I was the researcher in this study, the
story that follows is Mike's story. Because Mike is a
professional colleague, I want him to be recognized
and credited for his contributions to educational
reform (see Shulman [1990]). I prefer to tell his
One's view story with full recognition of who he is and where
he works.
of what Mark Pifer, the school's precalculus and calculus
mathematics teacher, had tried for years to get Mike to use
graphing calculators in his classroom. He had also
is affects
one's tried to get him to change his ways of teaching
some of the algebraic concepts because he believed
presentation that Mike's methods promoted confusion among the
precalculus and calculus students. Mike wanted his
of it students to learn algebraic concepts, and he felt
that calculators would harm students' thinking. He
perceived the definition of algebraic concepts to be
simply symbol manipulation. His method of teach
ing physics depended highly on dimensional analy
sis, so he viewed the calculator as a crutch that
bypassed important concepts. Dimensional analysis
consists of solving problems computationally by rec
tifying the dimensions so that the desired answer
has the required dimensions. For example, the dis
tance in miles equals the rate in miles per hour
times the time in hours. Since the hours "cancel,"
the result is miles equals miles.
Both Mike's conception of the role of the calcula
tor and his views of mathematics impeded his abili
ty to use the calculator effectively in his classroom
as well as his ability to facilitate algebraic thinking
on the part of his physics students. The teacher
change process depends in part on teachers' experi
ences and their reflection on those experiences
(Richardson 1990; Schubert and Ayers 1992). I
thought that if Mike could have experiences with
the use of the calculator in a meaningful integra
tion of mathematics and science, his thinking about
algebra could be influenced. In turn, because one's
view of what mathematics is affects one's presenta
86
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tion of it (Hersh 1986), Mike's teaching could
change as his beliefs about mathematics changed.
From my perspective as a university researcher
who is quite interested in teacher change, this
metamorphosis became a challenging and impor
tant study.
STEPS TO CHANGE
The first step came when Mike realized that his
students were becoming knowledgeable about pro
grammable calculators, yet he did not know how to
use them. Accordingly, he decided to attend a two
day technology conference. At that point I asked
him if he would collaborate with me in a research
project that examined his changing beliefs about
mathematics and about classroom calculator use.
In the project, I was to be a participant observer.
He agreed. We not only attended the two-day con
ference together but also participated in a week
long professional-development institute dealing
with connecting mathematics and science (CMS
Pilot Institute). During that time, we used the
Calculator-Based Laboratory (CBL) from Texas
Instruments and a graphing calculator.
The CBL is a data-collection system that uses
probes, such as temperature, light, and voltage
probes, to gather data into a graphing calculator.
The lists of data can then be graphed, regression
models can be fitted to the graphs, regression equa
tions can be determined, and the graphs can be
traced and analyzed. Connections between mathe
matics and science can be powerfully made.
After that week-long institute, Mike's views
toward calculator use in the classroom changed
dramatically. He became a calculator advocate, and
his algebraic thinking progressed as he saw the
importance of functions?in their numerical, graph
Marsha Nichol, mnichol@capital.edu, was the mathemat
ics resource specialist for the Eisenhower National Clear
inghouse for Mathematics and Science Education before
moving to her current position at Capital University,
Columbus, OH 43209. She is interested in teacher change
and the use of educational technology.
THE MATHEMATICS TEACHER
 ical, and symbolic representations. In fact, he is
now a teacher in week-long professional-development
institutes that incorporate technology, and he leads
in-service training sessions for both mathematics
and science teachers.
UNDERSTANDING
GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATIONS
Mike's previous use of graphical representations of
functions had been minimal. Drawing graphs was
tedious and seemed to him to be an unnecessary
added dimension. He did not have a working know
ledge of graphs of some functions, such as exponen
tial and trigonometric, nor did he capitalize on
transformations of those functions (i.e., vertical and
horizontal shifts, reflections, etc.) with their symbol
ic representations. During the CMS institute, Mike
began to understand algebraic concepts he had
never understood before, and he began to appreci
ate their significance in science. Mike saw the
major change as "I'm seeing the calculator as a tool
to get where I want to go rather than as an obstacle
to keep me from going to where I want to go."
CHANGE IN THE CLASSROOM
Mike's science courses began to change. They went
from predominantly lectures to more hands-on work,
and his students began to incorporate calculator
generated graphs into their laboratory write-ups
and into their tests. One of the first incidents after
Mike returned from the institute occurred in Mike's
marine biology class. Some students asked Mike if
it was true that every seventh wave that came onto
the beach was larger than the others. Mike
answered with the graphing calculator by showing
them that waves are sinusoidal and they have dif
ferent frequencies, depending on what causes them.
He put several sine functions with different fre
quencies together and showed students that a pat
tern was evident in which one of the waves would
be larger than the others and that the pattern was
a repeating one. According to Mike, prior to that
time he had avoided sine functions in his classes
and had always skipped the sections dealing with
harmonic motion. Now during conference presenta
tions, he tells others about his previous avoidance
of sinusoids as he demonstrates his firm grasp of
trigonometric concepts. He generates mathematical
models of harmonic motion with sinusoids, and he
also models damped harmonic motion. He accom
plishes the latter by first finding an exponential
equation to model the decay due to damping and
then inserting the exponential expression for the
amplitude in the sinusoid.
EXAMPLES OF ACTIVITIES
Mike's students have used much algebraic thinking
Vol. 90, No. 2 ? February 1997
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as they have worked with pH meters, voltage
meters, temperature probes, motion detectors, and
more. In one activity that Mike and I designed at
the week-long institute, we used an effervescent
antacid tablet and a flask partially filled with
water. The activity proceeds as follows. First deter
mine the temperature of the water and then drop in
the tablet and cork the flask. Using a pressure sen
sor inserted through the cork, collect data of the
pressure built up in the closed flask, measured in
atmospheres, and time, measured in seconds.
Graph the data by plotting pressure values on the
vertical axis and time values on the horizontal axis
to see a linear relationship. Next use warmer water
and repeat the experiment. Use still warmer water
and conduct the experiment again to give similar
results.
Figure 1 models examples of three experiments
using three different water temperatures. The
graphs of y h y2, and y3 display the data derived from
experiments using water temperatures of 21.0?C,
30.2?C, and 33.3?C, respectively. The graphs show
that a linear relationship occurs until the efferves
cent tablet has mostly dissolved, at which point the
pressure in the flask approaches its maximum value.
Figure 2a shows linear portions of the graphs from
figure 1. These linear portions are the only por
tions of the graphs considered for this activity.
PRESSURE CftTMJ
TIME ?SEO
10 Mike
saw the
Fig. 1
Graphical representations from three experiments calculator
involving a corked flask and an effervescent tablet
dissolving in water as a tool
rather than
as an
By looking at the graphs, one can see that the obstacle
steepness of the graphs differs, indicating that the
reaction rates, in atmospheres per second, are dif
ferent. The reaction rate is greater when warmer
water is used.
The experiment up to this point gives algebra
students first-hand experience with slopes and
makes nice connections among the data, the graph
ical representation, and the verbal links between
the steepness of graphs and reaction rates in
atmospheres per second. Extending the experiment
further, students can fit the data with linear func
tions and then find the equations of the functions.
Slopes can be discussed and can be linked to steep
ness of graphs and reaction rates.
87
 have the calculator find the numbers in the second

PRESSURE (ATM) list by subtracting the base temperature from those

values in the first list. The second list, L2, gives the
changes in temperature from the base temperature,
and the third list, L3, shows the reaction rates for
the three experiments. Using the horizontal axis
for changes in temperature and the vertical axis
TIME C5EO for reaction rates in atmospheres per second, plot
the points (increase in temperature, reaction rate)
on a graphing calculator. Use the calculator to cal
culate the exponential-regression equation, y =
8SX+.9724
48X+.9874 0.0249(1.069)*. Figure 4a shows the three points
plotted from L2 and L3, and figure 4b displays the
regression equation graphed simultaneously with
the three points.

(b)
REACTION
Fig 2
Linear portions of the graphs in figure 1
and their regression equations

In a further mathematical extension of these TEMP CHANGE

experiments, advanced-algebra students can con (a)
firm that the reaction rate doubles for every 10?C
REACTION RATE
increase in temperature. To investigate, form
ordered pairs giving (increase in temperature, reac
tion rate). Using the lowest temperature reading as
the base, find the difference between the base tem
perature and the temperatures of the water used in
subsequent experiments. In figure 2b, yx shows the TEMP CHAW?fc
linear-regression equation for the first experiment.
The original reaction rate, or slope of^, is 0.0246
(b)
Fig, 4
atmospheres per second. The change in temperature Points plotted from L2 and L3 in figure 3 and the
for that rate is zero, since that rate is designated to r?gression equation graphed simultaneously with
be the initial rate. Hence, the point (0,0.0246) is the points
obtained. The next two points obtained in similar
Mike's fashion are (9.2,0.0485) and (12.3, 0.0548). Figure
students 3 shows lists from which the points can be plotted. Recall that we are confirming the model that
have used The first list, Lh displayed only for information,
contains the temperatures of the water for the
states that when the temperature of the water rises
10?C, the reaction rate doubles. Suppose that the
much three experiments. If many more points were used lowest water temperature used in the antacid
algebraic to generate the model, it would be convenient to experiment produces a reaction rate, that is, the
slope of the linear model, of m?. After a 10?C rise in
thinking water temperature, a similar experiment should

TT IT rr yield a slope of 2m? atmospheres per second because

the reaction rate would double. After a 20?C rise in
21 .021?2
9.2 . ? water temperature, a similar experiment should
12.2 .051??
yield a slope of 22m?, or 2(20/10W? (i.e., 20?C change in
temperature, reaction rate doubling every 10?C).
After an x?C rise in water temperature, a similar
Ll<4>= experiment should yield a reaction rate of 2(x/10)m?
atmospheres per second. So the equation should be
Fig. 3
From left to right: Temperatures of water, changes y = m$?mVY, in which m? represents a designated
in temperature from the base temperature of 21 ?C, initial reaction rate and represents the change in
and reaction rates in atmospheres per second temperature from the base temperature that pro
duced the initial reaction rate.

88 THE MATHEMATICS TEACHER

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Since 2o 1 approximately equals 1.07 and since
the calculated initial reaction rate of 0.0249 atmos
pheres per second approximately equals the experi
mental initial reaction rate of 0.0246 atmospheres
per second, the regression equation of the experi
ment closely resembles the calculated theoretical
equation, y = 0.0246(1.07)*. Thus the experiments
confirm that the reaction rate in atmospheres per
second doubles for every 10?C increase in water
temperature when measuring pressure buildup in a
closed flask of water in which an effervescent tablet
is dissolving. Note that this activity incorporates
many mathematical concepts found in advanced
algebra. By using data that students have collected
themselves, powerful connections can be made
among the numerical, graphical, and algebraic
representations.
CHANGE IN MIKE'S
ALGEBRAIC THINKING
By doing activities such as the one just described,
Mike's algebraic thinking advanced in many ways,
not the least of which was his concept of what con
stitutes mathematics. Mike had done much mathe
matics, but we had never discussed the term math
ematics. After he had been using the calculator in
his science classes, I asked Mike what he thought
mathematics was. His answer was recorded in his
journal:
I find that my concept of math has really been
stretched into looking at relationships. Rather than
the math being an algebraic manipulation, it has now
become more of a summation?a relationship of pat
terns or of tendencies and trends as a result of the
various factors that are interacting with whatever
problem it is we're talking about_So then, I'm
starting to see a relationship?what is actually occur
ring in a much broader sense, more than just a solu
tion for a problem. It's now trends and tendencies and
the ability to predict and manipulate, because I'm see
ing a bigger picture. And so, in that respect, the math
is showing me what's really happening?not just a
solution.
The National Council of Teachers of Mathemat
ics (1989) discusses the effect that technology has
had on the discipline of mathematics: "The new
technology not only has made calculations and
graphing easier, it has changed the very nature of
the problems important to mathematics and the
methods mathematicians use to investigate them"
(p. 8). That outcome has certainly proved true in
Mike's case. As a result of the use of technology, not Mathematics
only have Mike's classroom practices changed, but
also his algebraic thinking has changed. Therefore,
allows one
Mike changed the kinds of problems that his stu to see trends
dents tackled and the manner in which his stu
and
dents were assessed. His changes in beliefs have
permeated his classroom and have been passed on
tendencies
to his students, who have reaped the benefits of his and to
new algebraic thinking.
predict and
REFERENCES manipulate
Hersh, Reuben. "Some Proposals for Revising the Phi- 1
losophy of Mathematics." In New Directions in the 1
Philosophy of Mathematics, edited by T. Tymoczko, I
9-28. Boston: Birkha?ser Boston, 1986. 88
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Cur
riculum and Evaluation Standards for School Math
ematics. Reston, Va.: The Council, 1989.
Richardson, Virginia. "Significant and Worthwhile
Change in Teaching Practice." Educational
Researcher 19 (October 1990): 10-18.
Schubert, William H., and William C. Ayers, eds.
Teacher Lore: Learning from Our Own Experience.
White Plains, N.Y.: Longman Publishing Group,
1992.
Shulman, Judith H. "Now You See Them, Now You
Don't: Anonymity versus Visibility in Case Studies
of Teachers." Educational Researcher 19 (August
September 1990): 11-15. @

He went on to talk about sinusoidal functions.

Recall that he had avoided trigonometric functions
in the past.
Calculators for the Classroom
We stock T.I. calculators from the basic to math labs,
Because we've been playing with that type of wave so
much with the CBL, I'm very comfortable with what's plus overhead systems, batteries, workbooks, etc.
going on, and it is not scary. And although a solution Call us for information or quotations!
is not hard to get, I'm no longer hung up on a solution.
I'm content with looking at the relationship and
what's happening?again a big picture concept_I'd 1-800-526-9060
say my math has taken a turn from an algebraic [com
putational] solution, I've conquered the problem, into
more courage to dwell into the unknown and the theo ta_ YB* EDUCATIONAL ELECTRONICS
retical and say, "What if?" and "How come?" and _ >r lILAM? SS weymouthlanding,ma?1?
"What if we vary something, what can we expect on
the other side?" Instruments IS * *?**_
Vol. 90, No. 2 ? February 1997 89

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