Developing Algebraic Aspects of Problem Solving within a Spreadsheet Environment

Previous analyses of the historical development of algebra, which looked at problem solving as a force for change in the most significant processes of evolution, lead to thinking about the didactic role that this activity could play in the construction of algebraic knowledge on the part of the students. This idea, together with the growing body of evidence that spreadsheet environments may help pupils to develop fundamental aspects of algebraic thinking, are the bases upon which an empirical study with pre-algebraic children and with algebra resistant pupils is developed. In this chapter some relevant results of the study are discussed, in particular those emphasizing the shift that pupils make within this environment from proceeding from the known to the unknown (pre-algebraic process) to dealing with the unknown in order to determine its numerical value (algebraic process).