Learning mathematics with

ClassWiz

Day 3
Barry Kissane
School of Education
Murdoch University
 Today’s mathematical ideas
• What does the ClassWiz offer to learners for
➢ Equations and inequalities
➢ Linear and quadratic equations
➢ Univariate statistics
➢ Bivariate statistics
➢ Spreadsheets
➢ Trigonometry
➢ Exponentials and logarithmic functions
➢ Rational and irrational numbers
➢ Calculus
➢ Matrices and vectors
• What is offered to students that is not previously available?

2
 A perspective
• Again, we will try to adopt the perspective of
students who have not yet learned the
underlying concepts
• This is (always) hard for teachers
• Concepts are acquired by experience
➢Not just by listening and watching
➢Not just by practicing procedures

3
 A model for calculator use
• Representation
➢Mathematical concepts and relationships
• Computation
➢All calculations, including messy numbers
• Exploration
➢Playing with ideas, investigating
• Affirmation
➢Checking, hypothesising, predicting

4
 Quadratic functions
• Quadratic functions are the first examples of non-linear
functions usually encountered by students
• ClassWiz offers similar opportunities to those for linear
functions (despite lack of graphics screen)
➢ Complete Investigation 3, Activity 3
• Both Table and Equation modes offer ways for students
to explore quadratic functions
➢ To see these, study in depth a single example
• such as f(x) = x2 – x – 6
• Then complete these two activities in Activity Book
➢ Module 3, Page 43, Activities 3 and 4

5
 Other non-linear functions
• ClassWiz offers similar opportunities to learn about
other functions
➢ Skim read Activity Book pp 36-38
• Notice how the calculator can be used to explore
points of intersection of graphs
➢ On p 40, one point of intersection is found close to x = 1.88
➢ Use a similar approach now to find one of the other two
points of intersection
• There are several calculator skills emphasised in Book:
➢ Complete Exercises in Module 3 on p 42
➢ Then complete Activity 5 in Module 3 on p. 43

6
 Equations
• Very important in mathematics
• Several methods of solution of equations are available
on calculators
➢ Guess, Check and Improve
➢ Table mode
➢ Equation mode
• Simultaneous
• Polynomial
➢ Solver
• These methods are different from symbolic methods,
usually the main focus
➢ See comparison table, Equations compared, now

7
 Numerical solution of equations
• Module 4 of Activity Book deals with equations
• Let’s start with an example:
➢Are there any numbers for which raising 2 to the
power of that number gives the same result as adding
3 to the number?
• Guess, Check and Improve offers several ways to
get a good numerical solution
➢Use Calculate
➢Use Table
➢Use CALC
➢Use Solve

8
 Equations
• Although a central idea in mathematics, this
topic is often reduced to routine symbolic
procedures
• Other aspects are frequently neglected:
➢Source of equations?
➢Constructing equations
➢Reasons for solving?

9
 Using Equation mode for linear
and quadratic equations
• Pay attention to the form of the equations and
check solutions
➢Systems of linear equations
• E.g., 4a + b = 7
3b = 4 – 2a
➢Quadratic equations
• E.g., what number can be squared by adding 1 to itself?
➢Cubic equations
• Find any points of intersection of the graphs of
1
𝑦 = 𝑥+1 and 𝑦 = 𝑥 2 − 5

10
 More equations
• In Calculate mode, the Solve command
provides numerical solutions to other
equations
• Need to determine the number of solutions
and choose suitable starting points
• A quick sketch graph or a table often helps
➢E.g., solve x + 3 = 2x
➢How to solve a + 3 = 2a ?

11
 Activity Book experiences
• Module 4: Equations and inequalities
• Variety of activities
➢Activity 2 highlights reasons for an error
➢Activity 4 concerns general solutions
➢Activity 5 explores an identity
➢Activity 6 explores ill-conditioning

12
 Inequalities
• Clearly are related to equations
➢x2 – x > 3
➢x2 – x ≤ 3
• Tables should help understanding concept?
• Use of Inequality mode
• Stressed in Indonesian curriculum?
➢Why is it regarded as so important?
➢How could ClassWiz contribute?

13
 Statistics
• Increasingly important aspect of mathematics
• Students as producers
➢Gathering own real data for own purposes
• Students as consumers
➢Analysing data from elsewhere
➢Interpreting other analyses
• Using ClassWiz for data analysis is necessary to
make space for other aspects
➢Realistic data

14
 Gathering data about us
• How long did it take you to arrive in Padang?
➢When (day, time) did you leave your home?
➢When (day, time) did you arrive here?
➢Determine the travel time
• Record your time on the board

15
 Analysing our data
• Check that data are reasonable
• Check data entry
• Errors can be corrected by editing or re-entry
• Statistics are extracted with T2
➢Use ! To go back
• What is typical travel time? How much
variation is evident?
• Draw a box and whisker plot
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 Grouping data
• When data are grouped, frequencies must be
turned on using SET UP
• Grouping data
➢is sometimes very efficient (frequency data)
➢sometimes loses information (intervals)
➢sometimes is necessary (too much data)
• E.g., how many children do you have?

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 Bivariate statistics
• Surprisingly absent from Indonesian
curriculum
• Examine relationships between variables
➢Especially seeking models for data
➢Facilitating prediction when model is strong
• Let’s look briefly at a real example
➢Investigation 7 (Indonesian version)

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 Dealing with real data
• The best data to use are those collected by
students themselves
• Good statistical data sources are also available
on the Internet
➢Badan Pusat Statistik is an important one
➢Worldometers is another good source
➢Wikipedia often has useful data as well

19
 Activity Book
• Statistics is covered in modules 10 and 11 of the
Activity Book
➢You should now be able to complete all the exercises
in these two modules
➢Exercises Module 10, pp 134
➢Attempt Activites 3 and 5 in Module 10
• In your group, devise an additional Activity
related to Statistics that uses the calculator for
learning and relies on real data
➢Be prepared to share and discuss your activity in class

20
 Spreadsheets
• ClassWiz is the first scientific calculator to
include a spreadsheet capability
• The spreadsheet is a versatile tool that can be
accessed via Menu 8
➢Data can be entered directly into cells
➢Formulas can be used, with both absolute ($) and
relative addressing
➢Formulas can be filled (via T menu)
➢Cells can display formulas or values

21
 Learning with spreadsheets
• Spreadsheets can be used for various learning
purposes:
➢Financial modelling
➢Mathematical modelling
➢Sequences, especially recursive sequences
➢E.g., Fibonacci sequence
➢See ClassWiz video for example
➢Probabilistic modelling

22
 Trigonometry
• Basic functions
➢Evaluation
➢Periodicity
➢Graphing
• Everyday measurement
➢Errors of measurement using Table or CALC
• Radian measure
• Trigonometric Identities
• Trigonometric Equations
• Sine rule and cosine rule

23
 PPPPTK flagpole, Yogyakarta
• Recently …
➢Angle of elevation is
39.1o
➢From a distance
of 14 m
➢Eye height of 170 cm
• How high is the
flagpole?

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 Using ClassWiz for trigonometry
• See Module 5 of Activity Book
• Choosing angle measures
➢Overriding angle measures
• Use of exact and approximate values
• Exploring identities
➢Using a pair of tables

25
 Exploring trig activities
• Six different activities are provided in Module 5 of
the Activity Book
➢Complete Activity 1 and one other Activity with a
partner
• Examine a trigonometry chapter of a current
textbook with ClassWiz in mind
➢How might a calculator support student learning?
➢How might a calculator support completion of the
exercises?
➢Find an example of an exercise for which the ClassWiz
would have a big effect
➢Rewrite an exercise to use ClassWiz 26
Exponential and logarithmic functions
• Important mathematically and practically
➢Modelling growth and decay
• Explore the functions using Table
• Modelling with exponential functions
• Properties of logarithms
• Properties of e and natural logarithms

27
 ClassWiz representations
• The important keys are mostly intuitive:
➢The ^ key is essential, and powerful
➢ghi all available
➢qkey gives inverses G and H
• Note that logarithm notation in Indonesia is
unusual, but should not cause problems
➢log2x is written in Indonesian texts as 2log x

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 Multiple solutions
• Powerful opportunities arise from solving
problems in multiple ways
• According to the 2010 Indonesian census, the
population of Sumatera Barat was 4 832 359.
• If the growth rate is unchanged at 1.4% p.a.,
when will the population reach 6 million?
➢Solve this problem in as many ways as you can
➢Find at least three different ways
• Table, CALC, Guess and check, Equation
➢Be prepared to share your methods

29
 Mathematical modelling
• Models of constant growth are manageable by
students mathematically, although not
necessarily realistic
More
complex
models
are likely
to be
better

Source: Worldometers
30
 Growth rates
• Indonesian population growth rates are not in
fact constant, although constant change model is
easier for students to use:

• Source: Worldometers
31
 Logarithms
• Properties of logarithms can be explored on
ClassWiz
➢Using numbers not just generalisations
➢To various bases
• Relationships between exponentials and
logarithms are directly accessible
• Complete Investigating logarithms

32
 Activity book
• Exercises in Module 6 of the Activity Book canvas
a range of calculator skills for this topic
• Activities illustrate ways of using ClassWiz to
learn the mathematical ideas involved
➢Try Activity 2 (half-life)
➢Try Activity 4 (properties of logarithms)
• In your group, devise a new Activity that helps
students learn about exponentials and logarithms
➢Be prepared to share your ideas

33
 Rational and irrational numbers
• Representation of surds in Math mode
➢√2, √12, √48, …
➢Note difference in Line mode
➢Note use of q=
• Fractional representations are approximations
➢Square the result with d
➢Square the result by entering manually
• What are the next few digits of √2?
• Notice that digits are not recurring
34
Operations with irrational numbers
• Notice that some results of operations with
irrational numbers may give rational results
➢√3 x √12
• Other results don’t give rational results
➢√3 x √6
➢√3 + √2
• Mysteriously!
• Powers of irrational numbers
35
 Getting better approximations
• Find √2
➢Express it as a decimal
➢Only nine decimal places are given
• Enter the result manually
➢Square it to check
• Find the next digit …
• Find the next few digits …
• Understanding how the calculator works …
36
 Approximating π and e
• Find a decimal approximation to π
• Improve the approximation using the previous
methods
• Enter the approximation again
• Explain the result
• Examine e in a similar way

37
 Calculus
• A key idea in mathematics, but often reduced
to symbolic procedures?
• ClassWiz can provide a different experience to
supplement the symbolic
➢Continuity and discontinuity
➢Limits
➢Derivatives
➢Integrals

38
 Continuity and discontinuity
• We deal mostly with continuous functions
➢Small changes in x lead to small changes in y
• Table mode offers a way to study continuity:
➢f(x) = x3 – x2 + 3 at x = 1
𝑥+2
➢g(x) = at x = 2
𝑥−2
9−4𝑥 2 3
➢h(x) = at x =
3−2𝑥 2
• Explore these for yourself on small intervals

39
 Limits
• The concept of a limit is surprisingly hard for
many students
➢But is used in defining derivatives and integrals
and so often taught early in calculus
➢The “closer and closer” idea is very important
• ClassWiz can help understand this
➢Using Table mode or CALC appropriately
• Complete Investigating limits with a partner

40
 Calculus on ClassWiz
• Module 14 of Activity Book illustrates several
possibilities
➢Use of Table mode and CALC for limit and
continuity
➢Numerical derivative command Y
➢Numerical integral command y
➢Properties of derivatives and integrals
• Numerical calculus to complement symbolic
calculus

41
 Derivatives and derivative functions
• A numerical derivative provides the slope of a
curve at a point
➢It might even be called a ‘rate of change’ function?
• A succession of these will show a pattern
• This is the essential concept of a derivative
function
• Use home screen Replay or CALC to explore
this powerful idea

42
 Integration
• The numerical integral function is powerful
➢Perhaps can be called an area function?
• The function allows properties of integrals to
be studied informally
• Other properties can be explored similarly

43
 Further opportunities
• Convergence of exponential series
𝑥 𝑥 𝑥2 𝑥3
➢𝑒 = 1 + + + + ⋯ , −∞ < 𝑥 < ∞
1! 2! 3!
1 𝑛
➢Examine lim 1 +
𝑛→∞ 𝑛
• Complete selected Activities on p 208, such as
➢Activity 1 (studying rate of change)
➢Activity 5 (integral properties)
➢Activity 6 (defining natural logarithm function)

44
 Matrices and vectors
• ClassWiz removes some tedium of matrix
arithmetic
➢Especially if matrix elements are not integers
➢Matrix arithmetic is readily accessible
➢Determinants and inverses easily computed
• Transformation matrices
• Systems of equations
• Activity Book Module 7
• What kinds of opportunities for learning are
there with matrix capabilities of ClassWiz?

45
 Matrix operations
• Three matrices can be defined in MATRIX
mode, each up to 3 x 3 dimensions
• After definition, arithmetic operations can be
undertaken
➢Including d and u, but not ^
• Other matrix operations are available in the
menu at q4
➢Including determinant and transpose

46
 Vector operations
• Three vectors can be defined in VECTOR
mode, each with dimensions 2 or 3
➢Vectors are shown as row vectors
• After definition, vector operations can be
undertaken
➢Including both cross product and dot product
➢Magnitude (length) of vector via Abs( ), qc

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Summary of calculator work today
• We have looked briefly at various
mathematical topics, mostly for SMA
students?
• How/what might the ClassWiz contribute to
meaningful learning here?
• Model components considered
➢Represent, compute, explore, affirm
• How can you adapt these ideas to your work?

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 The last two days …
• Some key messages
• Calculators are for learning
• Diverse roles of calculators
➢Represent, compute, explore, affirm
• Stages of professional development
➢On button, BLM, routine use, curriculum
• Working together, learning from each other
➢Learning from materials
• Development of materials
• Classroom activities
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Terrima kasih banyak!