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Non-euclidean geometry and its possible role in the secondary school mathematics syllabus

There are numerous problems associated with the teaching of Euclidean geometry at
secondary schools today. Students do not see the necessity of proving results which
have been obtained intuitively. They do not comprehend that the validity of a
deduction is independent of the 'truth' of the initial assumptions. They do not realise
that they cannot reason from diagrams, because these may be misleading or inaccurate.
Most importantly, they do not understand that Euclidean geometry is a particular
interpretation of physical space and that there are alternative, equally valid
interpretations. A possible means of addressing the above problems is tbe introduction of nonEuclidean
geometry at school level. It is imperative to identify those students who have
the pre-requisite knowledge and skills. A number of interesting teaching strategies,
such as debates, discussions, investigations, and oral and written presentations, can be
used to introduce and develop the content matter. / Mathematics Education / M. Sc. (Mathematics)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/16789
Date01 1900
CreatorsFish, Washiela
ContributorsAlderton, Ian William, 1952-
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeDissertation
Format1 online resource (vi, 153 leaves)

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