Small Leans into Big Steps: A Mixed-Reality Environment to Support Embodied, Ensembled Mathematics Learning

Abstract

In this work in progress, I showcase a classroom-based motion capture system which draws on theories of goal-oriented, constraints-based pedagogy. Through augmented reality marker-based detection and position reconstruction, the system uses senses locations of participants in a room and plots them on a Desmos graph. While considering the limitations of cost in public K-12 schools in the United States, the technology is designed to be an adaptable tool for mathematics educators to design their own activities. I share one example of two students in my classroom attempting to enact meaningful action to create the equation of a given parabola in a high school math class. This project contributes to the knowledge base of how students construct meaning about mathematical concepts through embodiment in mixed-reality spaces.