Preceptor: a tutor for transforming algebraic word problems into abstract algebraic equations
Kay Gladwell Schulze · 1988
With the advent of the microcomputer into the classroom, the recent advances in their memory size, speed and overall capabilities, and the continual decline in the number of adequately trained mathematics teachers, there is a growing need for intelligent tutoring systems that can serve as tools for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of classroom instruction. We propose an intelligent tutoring system, PRECEPTOR, that will increase a student's success rate at solving algebraic word problems involving two variables by improving this ability to map a natural language representation into an abstract algebraic equation. The system can tutor students in solving problems of three separate classifications and four difficulty levels. It dynamically generates the word problem, the two simultaneous equations and the final equation in one variable. PRECEPTOR models the cognitive processes and problem solving skills of both the student and the teacher and provides differential and individualized tutoring.