FOSTERING AN APPRECIATION OF MATHEMATICAL INDUCTION
Lynn Kiaer · PRIMUS · 1995
Mathematical induction is an important proof technique in many areas of application, but the teaching of mathematical induction is often hampered by an approach that teaches the easy summation examples first. This paper describes an introductory lecture that is designed to foster the students' appreciation of the topic. The suggested plan of attack includes an appeal to the students' intuition and a carefully grounded development of how an induction proof is constructed, as well as several examples of good introductory induction proofs.