Two Frameworks for Discrete Mathematics
Kirby McMaster, Brian Rague, Steven M. Hadfield · 2008
Information Systems and Computer Science educators have campaigned to increase mathe-matical content in the computing curriculum. Unfortunately, mathematical concepts are often presented in a manner that conflicts with the general mental framework, or gestalt, of IS and CS students. However, there is more than one gestalt in mathematics. In previous research, we developed two scales for measuring mathematical gestalt in books--a Logical Math scale and a Computational Math scale. In this paper, we apply our two scales to current Discrete Math textbooks to assess the relative emphasis these books give to each gestalt. Our findings have relevance in the development of approaches for teaching mathematical topics in comput-er courses, especially Discrete Math courses.