Philosophy of mathematical practice: a primer for mathematics educators

Yacin Hamami

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

12 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In recent years, philosophical work directly concerned with the practice of mathematics has intensified, giving rise to a movement known as the philosophy of mathematical practice. In this paper we offer a survey of this movement aimed at mathematics educators. We first describe the core questions philosophers of mathematical practice investigate as well as the philosophical methods they use to tackle them. We then provide a selective overview of work in the philosophy of mathematical practice covering topics including the distinction between formal and informal proofs, visualization and artefacts, mathematical explanation and understanding, value judgments, and mathematical design. We conclude with some remarks on the potential connections between the philosophy of mathematical practice and mathematics education.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1113-1126
Number of pages14
JournalZDM: the International Journal on Mathematics Education
Volume52
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Nov 2020

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020, FIZ Karlsruhe.

Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

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