A geometria dinâmica como ferramenta para o ensino de funções trigonométricas em um ambiente virtual de aprendizagem

Abstract

This research addresses the use of educational software for dynamic geometry (GeoGebra) to introduce concepts related to the teaching of geometry and trigonometry, based on its history. Also aims to make education more meaningful trigonometry, by viewing the computer from the influence of parameter changes on graphs of trigonometric functions. The activities proposed for specific objectives were to study some aspects of the trigonometric functions by their display on the computer and the development of applets as teaching tools. These activities are designed to be worked in the computer lab, where the debate among students is a major teaching strategies used here. These are generally structured as follows: construction of graphs of functions on one screen, comparison charts and conclusions obtained by students with teacher's guidance. The sine function was used as an example, but an approach can be developed similarly for the other trigonometric functions. These results showed that the use of computers as a tool in schools remains an important resource and a major challenge for teachers and researchers, as they start to be used as a source of study and creation of teaching strategies, for which different technologies can be employed. This research examined how relevant is the use of Dynamic Geometry software. The experiments led us to demonstrate that the acquisition of knowledge by students, resistant to usual teaching is, however, susceptible to significant leaps in the use of applets. This work showed, finally, as the familiarity built up can lead to an improvement in the ability to specify and estimate the elements of a trigonometric function. The findings presented here resulted from the analysis of students' activities, as well as their reflections in the resolution of these.