What Is and What Might Be the Legacy of Felix Klein?

Abstract

Felix Klein always emphasised the great importance of teaching at the university, and he strongly promoted the modernisation of mathematics in the classrooms. The three books “Elementary Mathematics from a higher (advanced) standpoint” from the beginning of the last century gave and still give a model for university lectures especially for student teachers. The “Merano Syllabus” (1905), essentially initiated and influenced by Felix Klein, pleaded for an orientation of mathematics education at the concept of function, an increased emphasis on spatial geometry and an introduction of calculus in high schools. The Thematic Afternoon “The legacy of Felix Klein” will give an overview about the ideas of Felix Klein, it will highlight some developments in university teaching and school mathematics related to Felix Klein in the last century, and it will especially be asked for the meaning, the importance and the legacy of Klein's ideas nowadays and in the future in an international, worldwide context.