Sketching the graph of a curve

By Andreea Panait, Dawson College

At a Glance

Discipline

STEM
Mathematics

Instructional Level

College & CEGEP

Course

Calculus I

Tasks in Workflow

Social Plane(s)

Individual
Group

Type of Tasks

Solving problems

Technical Details

Time

Single class period (< 90 mins)

Instructional Purpose

Application & knowledge building

Overview

In this activity, students cooperate to solve the steps to correctly graph a function.

The instructor first presents the problems and solves two on their board, closely following guidelines. They then divide the class in groups of 3 ( to make sure that groups are balanced in regards to skill/knowledge level) and give each of the students a handout with one step of the 3-stage problem. There are three versions of the problem, so each group gets a different one. Once students complete their section, they work together in their group to sketch the graph of the given function.

If there is time, groups can exchange their handouts to evaluate each others’ work. The instructor collects the assignment and gives feedback but not grades.

Instructional Objectives

Students will be able to sketch a curve
For students to be able to validate what others do, understanding mistakes in others’ reasoning and the overall problem-solving process.

Workflow & Materials

Activity Workflow

View on CourseFlow

Document

Activity Handouts

Andreea Panait

Contributor's Notes

Benefits

Collaboration: students feel more comfortable asking/learning from other students.
The procedure to solve this type of problem is long, thus it is helpful to share the process with others before doing it all alone.

Challenges

Some students finish more quickly and want to “help others”, which hinders other students’ learning
Some students who are very focused on the outcome/grade may pressure others to not make mistakes.

Tips

Mention that the goal is to be able to finish the question, but not necessarily get everything right – the assignment is not graded.
Remind students to manage the time they give to the individual problem solving part and the cooperative section.

Applied Strategies

Distributed Problem Solving

Artifact evaluation and completion

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Published: 27/11/2018

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