e-Learning

The terms "Electronic learning" and "e-Learning" are used to describe situations in which the student and teacher are separated by space or time and where this gap is bridged through the use of online technologies. This is a rapidly changing field which the Network tries to keep pace with through the provision of workshops, articles and dedicated publications.

In mathematics we have a number of particular issues which have yet to be satisfactorily addressed.

How do you include mathematical notation online?

The standard system for typesetting mathematics is LaTeX.

At a deeper level, how do you communicate "meaning" over the internet? Before we can answer these questions it is necessary to consider carefully the meaning of mathematical notation itself. It might appear obvious what elementary written mathematics means, but there are ambiguities. For a discussion of some of these issues, with particular reference to entry of mathematical formulae online, see this article. As result of this work the Network has supported the development of the DragMath project. There are technical solutions, such as MathML, but these are difficult for people, particularly students, to use. The inclusion of MathML within software is only slowly gaining ground. The Network will try to keep pace with these developments.

How do you share interactive mathematical diagrams and figures?

There are a number of systems which allow many users to interact online with mathematical diagrams and figures. Alternatively, there are more generic software which allow the "desktop" to be shared between users, thus allowing desktop applications to be used by both a student and teacher. Some particularly interesting software for working with mathematical diagrams is GeoGebra.

MSOR Projects

The Network has sponsored a number of projects which develop specific e-learning activities, for example Java Applets for Pure Mathematics. More details of our projects can be found here.