Abstract
The demands of the twenty-first century require a new focus on identification and nurturing of mathematical creativity, an important key to personal and global success. This chapter reports on an investigation of student teachers’ notions of creativity and how creativity can be fostered in school students, as well as an analysis of the creativity evident in their group solutions to a mathematical modelling problem. A questionnaire, a mathematical modelling problem and interviews were used to generate data analysed qualitatively. The findings show participants’ intuitive conceptions of creativity are in line with the main aspects of creativity discussed in the literature – fluency, flexibility, novelty and usefulness – and that creativity in the solving of the modelling task was influenced by suitability of the task for the specific cohort.
The original version of this chapter was revised. An erratum to this chapter can be found at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62968-1_53
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Appendix: Model-Eliciting Task: Making Money
Appendix: Model-Eliciting Task: Making Money
During the last summer holidays, Maya started a concession business at Wild Days Amusement Park. Her vendors carried popcorn and drinks around the park, selling wherever they can find customers. Maya needs help deciding which workers to rehire next summer.
Last year Maya had nine vendors. This summer, she can have only six – three full time and three part time. She wants to rehire the vendors who will make the most money for her, but she does not know how to compare them because they worked different numbers of hours. Also, when they worked makes a big difference. After all, it is easier to sell more on a crowded Friday night than a on a rainy afternoon.
Maya reviewed her records from last year. For each vendor, she totalled the number of hours worked and the money collected – when business in the park was busy (high attendance), steady and slow (low attendance) (see table). Please evaluate how well the different vendors did last year for the business and which three should she rehire full time and which three she should rehire part time.
Write a letter to Maya giving your results. In your letter, describe how you evaluated the vendors. Give details so Maya can check your work, and give a clear explanation so she can decide whether your method is a good one for her to use.
(Source: Lesh et al. 1997, p. 67)
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Wessels, H.M. (2017). Exploring Aspects of Creativity in Mathematical Modelling. In: Stillman, G., Blum, W., Kaiser, G. (eds) Mathematical Modelling and Applications. International Perspectives on the Teaching and Learning of Mathematical Modelling. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62968-1_41
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