[Maths-Education] review of interactive geometry software

[John Mason]

Hi Kate,

I have been using cabri since it started, at least once every two or 
three days. Recently I have started using Cinderella, because it has a 
scripting language which enables me to make applets where the Mac 
version of Cabri is a bit weak.  I haven't used Sketchpad for some time, 
largely because I found the macro-construction clunky (it has probably 
changed) and talking to NickJ in Brazil, it sounds as though Sketchpad 
is the most innovative and powerful of them all. That said, the macro 
construction in Cinderella is similar: it decides what is input and what 
is output; but I am still learning how Cinderella works.

I am like DaveH in that I use DGS for plenary work, displaying a 
phenomenon and then getting people to make sense of what they have seen. 
So I too am using lots of buttons.  I aim to offer images, what Gavrial 
Salomon called 'supplanted imagery' to enrich people's example spaces.

Cinderella is not nearly as sophisticated as Sketchpad in being able to 
move to different worksheets. Nevertheless I like being able to access 
all the objects, as in Geogebra, to change the names and the labels, and 
so on. Geogebra I use only when I need something for people familiar 
with it.

I think you definitely should have some demo files like Dave's. I am 
developing one on eigenvalues but am not yet happy with it.  There is a 
set of simple ones called Langrange & Tangents on my website 
(http://mcs.open.ac.uk/jhm3; go to Applets; look under Chordal Studies).

Is this part of the review that Ros Sutherland is involved in?

Cheers

J



On 11/8/10 23:33, Kate Mackrell wrote:
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> Thanks Dave.
>
> I wonder if perhaps instead of or as well as solving a problem in each 
> software I should design and make a pre-prepared file such as Dave 
> suggests?
>
> Kate
> On 11-Aug-10, at 6:39 PM, Dave Hewitt wrote:
>
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>> Excuse quick response.... I choose Sketchpad originally mainly due to 
>> the power of the buttons. The buttons enable me to construct 
>> pre-prepared files which are designed to use as a teaching resource, 
>> mainly with an interactive whiteboard. I am not sure whether the 
>> description I have just written makes it clear enough as to how I 
>> tend to use sketchpad as a teacher and so I offer an example attached 
>> along with reference to an article which gives a brief indication of 
>> how I might use it in a classroom (Hewitt, D. (2007), 'Canonical 
>> images', Mathematics Teaching, 205, pp. 6-11.). The fact that you ask 
>> the second question you have in your email adds to my sense that few 
>> people seem to consider the opportunities sketchpad, in particular, 
>> offers as a teaching resource by way of carefully constructed 
>> pre-prepared files where the teacher might control what happens with 
>> the file initially as part of a whole class interactive engagement 
>> with mathematical questions which can lead quite directly towards 
>> some desired mathematical content. In the literature I tend to read 
>> about students being given a problem/task and using the software as a 
>> tool to work on that task. This is, of course, one powerful way of 
>> using such software. however, personally I have found it particularly 
>> powerful to use sketchpad as a pedagogic tool working with a whole 
>> class, and this seems to be rarely discussed in the literature.
>>
>> Hope this makes some sense!
>>
>> In haste,
>>
>> Dave.
>>
>>
>> Dr Dave Hewitt
>> School of Education
>> University of Birmingham
>> Edgbaston
>> Birmingham
>> B15 2TT
>>
>> Tel: +44 (0)121 414 4824
>> Fax: +44 (0)121 414 4865
>> ________________________________________
>> From: maths-education-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk 
>> [maths-education-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk] On Behalf Of Kate 
>> Mackrell [katemackrell at sympatico.ca]
>> Sent: 11 August 2010 18:02
>> To: maths-education discussion forum
>> Subject: [Maths-Education] review of interactive geometry software
>>
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>> I am currently writing a comparative review of Sketchpad/Cabri/
>> Cinderella/Geogebra and would love to hear from anyone on the list
>> concerning:
>>
>> a. their reasons for choosing to use a particular interactive geometry
>> software.  Don't necessarily limit yourself to the ones above - I
>> would possibly be open to including other softwares in the review.
>>
>> b. any geometry/algebra tasks that would provide a useful basis of
>> comparison for the softwares.  I have a number of ideas, but I'm
>> worried that I will automatically choose a task that works best with
>> my own favourite software, which would not be quite fair!
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Kate Mackrell<Rotating dot.gsp>
>
>