Steven+Jones

Current Research Interests and Projects

 * Student understanding of calculus
 * 1) How students make sense of integrals
 * 2) Using applied contexts (beyond just simple position-velocity) to help students understand derivatives
 * 3) Design experiments to study effectiveness of alternate introductions to the integral
 * Applying mathematics to science and engineering
 * 1) Studying different understandings of integration and its effects on making sense of physics and engineering integral formulas
 * 2) Using informal ideas of limits to make sense of physics formulas (and to see what those limits say about co-varying quantities)
 * 3) Investigating the differences in understanding derivatives in purely mathematical contexts vs. applied contexts
 * "Knowledge in pieces" cognitive theory (basically that concepts don't exist as single "entities" in our mind, but are made up of smaller elements)
 * 1) Reconceiving traditional ideas about "misconceptions"
 * 2) How ideas can be totally useful in one context, but unproductive in another

Past Research and Interests
I guess I'm not "old" enough to have "past" interests... (You'll have to go to Steve W and Blake for those...)

Other Topics I Would be Willing to Supervise

 * Anything dealing with calculus
 * Applying mathematics to science at any level (anywhere from the elementary level on up through the college level)
 * Statistics education (entry level statistics)
 * Other undergraduate mathematics topics (differential equations, proof, numeric methods, probability, analysis, ...)
 * History or philosophy of mathematics