The new chalkboard: the role of digital pen technologies in tertiary mathematics teaching

Abstract

Traditional classroom teaching environments have used board technologies to incorporate handwritten elements within multimodal pedagogical approaches to developing mathematical thinking. In the tertiary sector, increasing use of computing technologies based on keyboard and mouse interfaces and learning environments that emphasize digital displays constrain the use of handwritten elements. This article discusses how the use of pen-enabled Tablet PCs can provide support for handwritten elements, to build on the benefits of traditional pedagogical approaches and facilitate the development of new approaches.