Timeline for Most harmful heuristic?
Current License: CC BY-SA 2.5
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 19, 2019 at 21:53 | comment | added | auden | @MichaelLugo Speaking as someone who took highschool geometry three years ago...so six years after you wrote that comment...yep, they're still a thing. | |
| May 28, 2015 at 21:13 | comment | added | Michael | I've never seen a two-column proof. | |
| Dec 6, 2010 at 18:21 | comment | added | Jeremy West | I realize I am very late to the party here, but I couldn't resist commenting that the high school student I am currently tutoring is required to do these types of proofs. In fact, when I explain to people that research mathematicians prove theorems, the most common response I get is "I hated doing proofs in geometry!" Upon examination, I always find that they did two-column proofs, and this is their only association with the term. | |
| Aug 18, 2010 at 20:39 | comment | added | Jack Lee | A two-column proof is a proof arranged as a series of numbered statements, with the statements in the left-hand column and corresponding justifications in the right-hand column. This used to be the way proofs were universally taught in US high-school geometry courses. They're still taught this way, but somewhat less universally, I think. | |
| Aug 18, 2010 at 19:57 | comment | added | Piero D'Ancona | ...what is a two-column proof? | |
| Aug 18, 2010 at 17:30 | comment | added | Jack Lee | If students are taught that two-column proofs are the only kind there is, then I agree that they could be harmful. However, I think the framework of two-column proofs can be extremely helpful in teaching students to think through the underlying structure of a proof before trying to write it out in paragraph form, because it helps them avoid vague hand-waving arguments. When I teach undergrads how to do proofs, I have them write two-column proofs first, and then explain that "This is what the proof looks like naked. But to take it out in public, you need to put clothes on it." | |
| Apr 26, 2010 at 3:27 | comment | added | Cam McLeman | Excellent answer. While there's some great responses in this list, this one definitely gets my vote for most harmful. | |
| Oct 29, 2009 at 0:06 | comment | added | Akhil Mathew | They certainly do. | |
| Oct 28, 2009 at 23:11 | comment | added | Michael Lugo | Do students even see the two-column proofs any more? From some things I've read I've gotten the impression that those have been pushed aside in favor of just not proving anything at all. | |
| Oct 28, 2009 at 15:50 | history | answered | Anna Varvak | CC BY-SA 2.5 |