イギリスにおける数学教育改造運動 : 数学教育におけるジョン・ペリーの位置に着目して

Abstract

In the latter half of the nineteenth century, school mathematics, which included arithmetic, algebra, and geometry, was regarded as a mental discipline. Mathematics teachers and mathematicians considered deductive geometry, based on Euclid, the most effective for reasoning. However, most students found deductive geometry too logical and abstract. In a British association meeting at Glasgow, 1901, John Perry (1850 － 1920), an engineer and mathematics and physics teacher, criticized such school mathematics. In his address, ‘The Teaching of Mathematics’, he proposed a new scheme of elementary practical mathematics. This included modern mathematics such as functions and calculus. He said that usefulness should determine what subjects are taught to children. In the discussion that followed his address, the mathematics teachers and mathematicians present looked not for the reform but for the modification of school mathematics. This gap stemmed from the trend in teaching mathematics and Perry’s career as an engineer. However, Perry’s criticisms were to be echoed by foreign reformers of school mathematics. Finally, school mathematics became the basis for modern mathematics.