Abstract:
We use Mason’s (2004) framework of structures of attention to offer an account of why a group of students continually posited a mathematically incorrect way of understanding (Harel, 1998) while working on graph theory task. Analysis suggests that despite continuous activity and discussion, certain aspects of the group’s attention did not change over time, and the overall structure of their attention did not so much shift (in the sense of a change in direction or focus) as it did expand (in the sense of a change in size). We propose that the group’s persistent attachment to the incorrect way of understanding is understandable in light of their structures of attention, and that a fine-grained application of Mason’s framework can offer sympathetic insight into the persistence of incorrect ways of understanding.
