The role of problem context familiarity in modelling first-order ordinary differential equations

Based on the unpredictable effect of context familiarity when students solve real-world problems, this work aims to analyse how certain contexts can be used by pre-service mathematics teachers in the representation and real-world verification of a first-order mathematical model in the classroom in the subject of Ordinary Differential Equations. Specifically, this paper reports a classroom experience in which pre-service mathematics teachers compared the solution of a first-order ordinary differential equations (ODE) with a real-world experimental model. Using documentary records (i.e., students´ hand-written solutions and field notes) and a questionnaire on students´ perceptions on this classroom experience, qualitative results indicated that the pre-service mathematics teachers’ familiarity with an authentic context was a fundamental factor they chose a real-world model to represent the solution of a first-order ODE. Our analysis of the results highlights the importance of integrating familiar real-world contexts for pre-service mathematics teachers to model a first-order ODE, which is one of the fundamental principles of STEM disciplines.