ETM Meetings

ETM meetings are organized into working groups based on the contributions proposed by participants. The form of the Symposium allows an interesting exchange of ideas amongst participants and encourages the development of a scientific community with common interests. ETM meetings have an international dimension (Canada, Chile, Cyprus, France, Greece, Mexico, Switzerland, etc.) and a multilingual participation (English, Spanish, French).

The first ETM meeting took place in October 24-25, 2009 in Nicosia (Cyprus). Communications of this first meeting were published in the book: Gagatsis, A., Kuzniak, A., Deliyianni, E., & Vivier, L. (eds, 2009). Cyprus and France, Research in Mathematics Education, Lefkosia.

The second meeting was held in October 22-23, 2010 in Paris, for the first time in the form of a symposium. The papers presented in this symposium were published after being reviewed in the journal ‘Annals of Teaching and Cognitive Sciences’ (Annales de Didactique et de Sciences Cognitives, in french).

The third edition of ETM was held in Montreal in October 22-23-24, 2012. The papers in this symposium are under review in an editorial process for publication in a special issue of the journal RELIME.

Symposium Proceedings

You can find the complete proceedings here: Link

Please cite the text as:

Gómez-Chacón, Mª I., Escribano, J., Kuzniak A., Richard, P. (Eds.) (2015). Espacio de Trabajo Matemático, Actas Cuarto Simposio Internacional ETM. Madrid: Publicaciones del Instituto de Matemática Interdisciplinar, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. ISBN: 978-84-606-9475-5

Gómez-Chacón, Mª I., Escribano, J., Kuzniak A., Richard, P. (Eds.) (2015). Mathematical Working Space, Proceedings Fourth ETM Symposium. Madrid: Publicaciones del Instituto de Matemática Interdisciplinar, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. ISBN: 978-84-606-9475-5

Gómez-Chacón, Mª I., Escribano, J., Kuzniak A., Richard, P. (Eds.) (2015). Espace de Travail Mathématique Actes Quatrième Symposium ETM. Madrid: Publicaciones del Instituto de Matemática Interdisciplinar, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. ISBN: 978-84-606-9475-5

General overview of the fourth ETM Symposium

ETM meetings were initially dedicated to the study, development and possible uses of the concept of Mathematical Work Space (ETM, Espace de Travail Mathématique, in french) in mathematics education. In fact, the main objective is the study of the nature of mathematical work. This evolution has deepened and diversified the approaches to the subject. In particular, the research in this field integrates the semiotic, cognitive and instrumental dimensions of mathematical work that have contributed to the definition of constituent issues of ETM. During the ETM3 colloquium, the institutional and social dimension of mathematical work was also considered, opening the idea to researching new points of view.

The main objectives of the fourth meeting are to strengthen the community of education researchers interested in ETM, and to open the issue of ETM to other areas of research.

Organization by topics

The meeting will be organized around three main topics and each contribution must fit into one of them.

Topic 1 - The mathematical work and Mathematical Work Spaces

The purpose of this theme is, firstly, to elaborate on the theoretical model defined by the areas of mathematical workspace and, secondly, to demonstrate the possible applications as an analytical tool in particular studies. The following questions could be addressed:

What is the reference knowledge and the understanding used in the ETM? The mathematical work can crystallize ways of doing and paths of thinking that appear in solving mathematical problems proposed in teaching or derived from research in mathematics. How do the identification processes of mathematical work associated with knowledge take place amongst teachers and learners? How does the ETM explain the knowledge and activities on which it is based?

The answers to these general questions could depend upon the study of cases from specific areas (geometry, analysis, probability, etc.). but also on modelling activities using the interaction of real world and mathematical models. They may also rely on historical or epistemological studies.

Topic 2 - Specific tools and signs in the mathematical work

This topic focuses on the use of technological tools and signs that are considered vehicles of knowledge in order to see how they affect mathematical work. We may set a double question in relation to their impact.

The first one is about the potential of technological environments in transforming the mathematical work of the student. As a key element of the mathematical work space, the interactions between the environment and other components offer an extraordinary case study.

The second question arises from the consideration of epistemological background present in ETM. This is used to study how the use of technology environments or systems affects the students’ own epistemological construction, influencing their work. This may involve, for example, both the nature of mathematical objects that the student constructs, the proofs that are mathematically acceptable and the role of the steps of the investigation.

Topic 3 - Genesis and development of mathematical work: the role of teacher, trainer and interactions

This new topic deals with the role of the teachers and the interactions when forming a consistent but also efficient ETM. How to manage the interactions around the mathematical work in the classroom? This area will develop the analysis of these interactions and the construction of mathematical thinking from a holistic viewpoint that takes into account different interrelated dimensions (cognitive, educational, technical, affective, cultural). Specifically we will discuss what the purpose of teacher training and the trainers is during the development process. In the class, the interaction between the teacher and the students’ work leads to a dynamic equilibrium of ETM. Naturally, the proposed studies within this theme may suggest other ways to describe the process of genesis involving the students and the teachers.