Investigating Notions of Proof

Download or read book Investigating Notions of Proof written by Keir Finlow-Bates and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2009-10 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although proof is seen by most mathematicians as lying at the heart of mathematics, it is rarely explicitly taught at any point in the mathematics curriculum. This is compounded by the fact that within the mathematics and education communities there is no clear definition of or consensus on what actually constitutes proof. In this book a fallibilist approach based on the work of Imre Lakatos is adopted, and proof and proving are set within the context of a form of social knowledge in order to gain insight into the proof-activities of degree level mathematics students.