The Role and Uses of Technologies in Mathematics Classrooms: Between Challenge and Modus Vivendi

Drawing support from theoretical frameworks, this article analyses the role and uses of technology in the teaching of mathematics, with specific reference to the complexity of integrating technology into teaching. Four aspects are discussed here: the changes that technology brings about in classroom mathematical activity, the difficulties students encounter in solving problems in a technology-rich environment, the evaluation of potential assignments and the creation of conditions appropriate for learning, and the difficulties faced by teachers who use technology in deciding when and how to intervene. This analysis is illustrated by examples taken primarily from dynamic geometry, but similar analyses could be conducted for computerized environments of other kinds.RésuméCet article porte sur le rôle et l’utilisation des technologies, plus spécifiquement sur la complexité de l’intégration des technologies en enseignement des mathématiques, en s’appuyant pour aborder cette question sur certains cadres théoriques. Quatre aspects y sont développés: les changements que provoquent ces technologies sur l’activité mathématique mobilisée à l’école, les difficultés que les élèves rencontrent dans la résolution de problèmes dans un tel environnement, l’analyse des tâches proposées et des conditions propices à un apprentissage, et la complexité de la gestion de l’intervention pour un enseignant qui intègre de telles technologies. Cette analyse est illustrée par des exemples provenant principalement d’un environnement de géométrie dynamique mais des analyses semblables peuvent être conduites dans d’autres types d’environnements informatiques.

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