Abstract:

When students enrol in Mathematics courses during their 1st year in university degrees, they usually face several difficulties in order to pass the course. Most of them are related to the competence level in mathematical skills. In this work, we approach our students’ problems in mathematics from a literacy viewpoint. Indeed, we process and analyse data recollected from a diagnostic test delivered to 1st-year students in Mathematics for Business I in the Faculty of Business from Pablo de Olavide University at the beginning of the 1st semester. In order to analyse the answer to the test, this was implemented for three academic years obtaining samples for both each year and the aggregate period of time. In this way, we look for some behaviour pattern in students’ competence level about mathematical literacy by means of detecting if they are capable to recognize and identify some basic mathematical symbols that are essential to express notions and reasonings in Mathematics; symbols that they should know after accomplishing their High School graduate.

An appropriate use of symbology in Mathematics is essential and relevant because Mathematics requires the use of formal, technical language, which is based on the use of mathematical symbols in order to remove and avoid any possible ambiguity in expressions and chains of reasoning. Hence, teaching staff needs to know the competence level that our students display for the use and recognition of mathematical symbols; after passing mathematics courses in University degrees, our students must be able to read and express mathematical notions and ideas by using the mathematical language; especially with respect to their future professional growth.

Starting from the data recollected with the above-mentioned diagnostic test, we have analysed the level of recognition for five basic mathematical symbols, taking into account both the academic year and the way to access University studies in order to detect significant differences by means of these two categories.

Keywords:

Mathematical symbology, competence evaluation, Mathematical literacy, statistical analysis.