A Theory Bite on Infinity: A Companion to Falk

Autor/in	Sfard, Anna
Titel	A Theory Bite on Infinity: A Companion to Falk
Quelle	In: Cognition and Instruction, 28 (2010) 2, S.210-218 (9 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0737-0008
Schlagwörter	Stellungnahme; Mathematical Concepts; Academic Discourse; Theories; Concept Formation; Data Collection; Data Analysis; Interviews + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Discourse; Diskurs; Theory; Theorie; Concept learning; Begriffsbildung; Data capture; Datensammlung; Auswertung; Interviewing; Interviewtechnik
Abstract	There are infinitely many ways of talking about infinity. The assortment of discourses on learning infinity is infinite as well. When the author says "way of talking" or "discourse," she is concerned with much more than the question of how words are chosen and combined. Ways of talking are not just innocent "auxiliaries" to thinking--they shape the way people think and, thus, also the way people act. As such, the words they use and how they use them deserve their utmost attention. Above all, the ways they talk should never be taken for granted. Whereas generally important, this caveat is of particular significance when it comes to the special type of discourse known as research. It is, therefore, the author's professional credo that researchers should always work on two levels simultaneously. They should investigate phenomena and, in parallel, investigate the way they talk about them. By being explicit about how they use words and by considering alternatives, the researchers not only increase their chance for their being properly understood, but they also open themselves to insights that can only be gained by refining one's discursive tools. In this article, the author tries to add a "theory bite" in this companion to Ruma Falk's article (2010). More specifically, the author attempts to complete Falk's account with an explicit interpretation of Falk's keywords. She claims that the proposed interpretation of Falk's keywords entails a particular unit of analysis, which, in turn, raises some special requirements with respect to data collection and analysis. While listing these requirements, the author also says a few words about how they guided her own studies on children and infinity. (Contains 1 figure and 3 footnotes.) (ERIC).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10