On Mathematics Teacher Education:

Subject Studies, Pedagogy and Technology

Talk in a Colloquium at
THE DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS
AND STATISTICS
GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY
January 16, 2001, 2-3 pm

Martti E. Pesonen
Department of Mathematics
University of Joensuu
Finland, Facts about Finland, Map, Clickable-Suomi?
(Eastern Finland, Joensuu)

Geographical and historical view

The University of Joensuu is situated in Eastern Finland,
about 250 miles North-East from the capital Helsinki and 35 miles from the Russian boundary.
It was founded in 1969, on the basis of the Eastern Finland Teacher Education Seminarium,
which had been moved to Joensuu from Sortavala (Finnish territory until the II World War).
For obvious historical reasons the educational emphasis has been on Teacher Education.
It was broadened to upper secondary school level and
the new Faculties began to supply with subject studies.
Most new, young academic staff came from the University of Helsinki.

Math Department

The University of Joensuu constitutes about 5 percent of the Finnish tertiary level education,
and the same is true for the Faculty of Science in Science Education.

6 professors
2 senior lecturer
5 assistants (3 senior, 2 junior)
1 full-time research fellow
7 full-time Ph.D. students
2 Ph.Lic. graduate students in Mathematics Education
Mathematics Department is strongest in

complex analysis (in a broad sense)
applied mathematics (numerical solution of DE)

and some teachers are involved in research and development of mathematics education.

Teacher Education

We take a look on how our Teacher Education Programme
has been developing from the traditional one meant for research mathematicians
towards a more profiled for the teacher profession.

(Transparencies)

While the main part of pedagogy is taught in Faculty of Education,
also the department's role has become more and more important.
In a small departmentwith some 20 students graduated yearly,
it is possible to provide the studentswith reasonable knowledge of technology.

In general, computer is used for visualization and computation,
but in some courses the computer is meant to play a crucial role.

All students must do their Master's Thesis using some mathematically oriented
Word Processing System (mainly LaTeX, perhaps using Scientific WorkPlace).

Technology used in courses

Discrete Mathematics:

Programming graph theory algorithms with Matlab (started at the end of 80's)

students have code comprehension and writing activities

algorithms animated inserting plotting commands in the code

we create tools for analyzing relations and graphs

recurrence relations, series and generating functions using Maple V

Differential Equations:

Visualization of direction fields and phase planes using Matlab based platform (during the 90's)

first using Matlab-programming and then using C.C.Polking's interactive M-files 'dfield' and 'pplane'

now available also as Java Applets

Maple as a scientific symbolic calculator and visualizer (1997 - )

Programming with Maple in constructing the Laplace transform (1997- )

Linear Algebra:

JavaSketchpad applets (see below)

Programming with Maple: binary operations

(Abstract) Algebra:

programming with ISETL, an Interactive Set Language (1997-1999), again ?
Algebra material 1999

The educational framework by Ed Dubinsky

Interactive Java Applets in visualizationand concept formation
extension of AMS-MAA New Orleans talk January 10th, 2001

Collection of our JavaSketchpad Applet Constructions