0000000000297539
AUTHOR
Floridona Tetaj
An Analytical Scheme to Characterise the Mathematical Discourse of Biology Tasks
The chapter describes an analytical scheme designed for investigating the mathematical discourse of biology tasks. The scheme was developed in the context of analysing tasks that are part of a fisheries management graduate-level course at a Norwegian university. Grounded in the commognitive perspective, the scheme focuses on the following aspects of the tasks: the mathematical content, its relation to biology discourse and students’ expected engagement with both discourses. To illustrate the potential of analysis, I present and justify the choice of the categories included in the scheme, exemplify its use on one specific task and discuss some of the limitations of this approach to task anal…
Students' understanding of mathematical models in three norwegian biology courses
International audience; Development in Biology over the last three decades have greatly increased the need for using mathematics in this field. This has influenced biology students which need to develop mathematical knowledge to be able to work with contemporary biology models, including frameworks that are applicable in analyzing the overwhelming flow of biological data (i.e. Labov, Reid & Yamamoto, 2010). Although a quantitative approach is often used in university biology courses, yet they remain largely qualitative and descriptive (Nelson, et. al., 2009). In Norwegian context, where this study will be conducted, there is an increased awareness towards mathematics from the Departments of…