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High school geometry students' justification for their views of empirical evidence and mathematical proof

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Abstract

Concerns about the use of computer-aided empirical verification in geometry classes lead to an investigation of students' understandings of the similarities and differences between the measurement of examples and deductive proof. The study reports in-depth interviews with seventeen high school students from geometry classes which employed empirical evidence. The analysis focuses on students' reasons for viewing empirical evidence as proof and mathematical proof simply as evidence.

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Chazan, D. High school geometry students' justification for their views of empirical evidence and mathematical proof. Educ Stud Math 24, 359–387 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01273371

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