Programming as mathematical narrative

Yishay Mor (1) , Richard Noss (1)

1 LKL - London Knowledge Lab

This paper describes a narrative-oriented approach to the design and analysis of a computational system and a set of activities for mathematical learning. Our central contention is that programming can offer a key to resolving the tension between the different representational structures of narrative and mathematical formalism. In the course of describing our approach, we make a distinction between the epistemic-cognitive elements of narrative and the social, cultural and affective elements. We then elaborate the theoretical grounds of the individual epistemic facets of narrative. We propose a link between narrative theories of learning and constructionist traditions, specifically the notion of situated abstraction. This link suggests the possibility of further dialogue between the two academic communities.

Keywords: didactic of mathematics; situated abstraction; narrative; narrative structures; narrative learning environments (NLE)

Domains: Technology for Human Learning

Yishay Mor, Richard Noss. Programming as mathematical narrative. International Journal of Continuing Engineering Education and Life-Long Learning, 2006, n/a, pp.n/a. ⟨hal-00190369⟩