EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND CURRICULAR DESIGN: PROMOTING MATHEMATICAL CREATIVITY FOR ALL STUDENTS

In this chapter I discuss the tensions between the discourse about creativity in academic circles in general and the creativity that I perceive to be the main goal of school mathematics. I regard the essence of creativity in mathematics to be the ability to conjecture, go beyond the known, take a personal view and become involved in exploring, ask questions, argue, explain, and refute. I focus on exploration software designed to scaffold teaching and learning practices with content that is close to that of traditional mathematics curricula and can be integrated with traditional content throughout the entire year or over school years. My primary concern is the tension between the view of the curriculum as a planned sequence to be followed in a specific order and the affordances of educational technology, which enable learners to be creative in constructing culturally accepted mathematics. Against the background of inexpensive technology that can be used to perform manipulations, I discuss the relations between skill in symbol manipulation and creative thinking, and present the affordances of electronic textbooks in support of student-centered classrooms.