D. Küchemann (Ed.

) Proceedings of the British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics, 27, 3, November 2007

BSRLM Geometry Working Group

WAYS OF LINKING GEOMETRY AND ALGEBRA:
THE CASE OF GEOGEBRA
Markus Hohenwarter and Keith Jones
Florida Atlantic University, USA; University of Southampton, UK
This paper discusses ways of enhancing the teaching of mathematics through
enabling learners to gain stronger links between geometry and algebra. The vehicle
for this is consideration of the affordances of GeoGebra, a form of freely-available
open-source software that provides a versatile tool for visualising mathematical
ideas from elementary through to university level. Following exemplification of
teaching ideas using GeoGebra for secondary school mathematics, the paper
considers current emphases on geometry and algebra in the school curriculum and
the current (and potential) impact of technology (such as GeoGebra). The paper
concludes by raising the implications of technological developments such as
GeoGebra for the pre-service education and inservice professional development of
teachers of mathematics.

INTRODUCTION
Geometry and algebra are central to mathematics and have been called its “two
formal pillars” (Atiyah, 2001). As such, school mathematics curricula around the
world afford prominent positions to both geometry and algebra, especially at the
secondary school level. In some countries this means entirely separate courses on
geometry and algebra, while in other countries, the curriculum alternates topics from
the various components of mathematics.
This paper discusses ways of enhancing the links between geometry and algebra
through consideration of the affordances of GeoGebra, a freely-available open-source
software package that provides a versatile tool for visualising mathematical ideas
from elementary through to university level. Following a presentation of some
examples of teaching ideas using GeoGebra for secondary school mathematics, the
paper raises issues concerning the current emphases and treatment of geometry and
algebra in the school curriculum and the current and potential impact of technology
such as GeoGebra. Finally, the paper broaches the implications of all this for the pre-
service education and inservice professional development of mathematics teachers as
technology such as GeoGebra becomes more pervasive in mathematics classrooms.

SOFTWARE FOR VISUALISING MATHEMATICS

Within the host of software that is available to support the teaching and learning of
mathematics, two prominent forms are computer algebra systems (CAS, which focus
on manipulation of symbolic expressions) and dynamic geometry software (DGS,
which concentrate on relationships between points, lines, circles and so on). Amongst
the best-known examples of CAS are Derive and Maple, while Cabri and Sketchpad

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are well-known DGS. As both these types of software have developed over the years,
forms of CAS have begun to include graphing capabilities in order to help to
visualise mathematics; likewise, DGS have begun to include elements of algebraic
symbolisation in order to be useful for a wider range of mathematical problems.
A recently-development piece of software entitled GeoGebra (Hohenwarter, 2002;
Hohenwarter & Preiner, 2007) provides a closer connection between the symbolic
manipulation and visualisation capabilities of CAS and the dynamic changeability of
DGS. It does this by providing not only the functionality of DGS (in which the user
can work with points, vectors, segments, lines, and conic sections) but also of CAS
(in that equations and coordinates can be entered directly and functions can be
defined algebraically and then changed dynamically). These two capabilities are
characteristic of GeoGebra in that the default screen (see Figure 1, with the language
set to English) provides two windows in which each object in the algebra window
corresponds to an object in the geometry window, and vice versa.

Figure 1: default GeoGebra screen showing both the algebra and geometry windows
As such, GeoGebra provides the facility to move between the algebra window and
the geometry window - meaning that it is possible for the user, on the one hand, to
investigate, say, the parameters of the equation of a circle by dragging the circle with
the mouse and observing the equation change, or, on the other hand, the user can
change the equation of the circle directly and observe the way the objects in the
geometry window change.
Figure 2 illustrates the GeoGebra screen for a problem involving the tangent to an
ellipse (with the language set to German). Again, the user can drag objects in the
geometry window and observe the changes in the algebraic representation; or the user

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can change the algebraic representations in the algebra window and observe the
objects change in the geometry window.

Figure 2: GeoGebra screen showing a problem involving the tangent to an ellipse

The software has a range of other features that make it useful for tackling a range of
problems in mathematics. For example, in Figure 3 “sliders” are employed to provide
a way of dynamically adjusting parameters.

Figure 3: using sliders in GeoGebra to visualise parameters

Thus the basic objects in GeoGebra are not only points, vectors, segments, polygons,
straight lines, all conic sections, etc., but also functions in x. Hence it is possible to
enter directly the coordinates of points or vectors, the equations of lines or conic
sections, plus functions, numbers, angles, and so on. For example a line g may be
entered as g: 3x + 4y = 7 or a circle c as c: (x - 3)2 + (y+ 2) 2 = 25.

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This capability means that calculations with geometric objects like points and vectors
are feasible. For example, the centroid of a triangle with vertices A, B and C might be
entered as S = (A + B + C) / 3. Additionally, GeoGebra offers many powerful
commands starting from the slope of a straight line and encompassing differentiation
and integration of functions.
On top of all this, GeoGebra is truly platform-independent (in that it is written in
Java) and it is free to use directly from the GeoGebra website (see endnote). Not only
that, but any GeoGebra construction can be exported/saved as a webpage (in html
format) and hence can become a “dynamic worksheet” for learners to use. GeoGebra
is also freely translatable into other languages (not only its menus but also its
commands) and is currently available in upwards of 35 languages.
Given the capabilities of GeoGebra and its potential in mathematics education, it is
worth considering the relationship between geometry and algebra in the school
curriculum.

GEOMETRY AND ALGEBRA IN THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM

While, as noted above, geometry and algebra are afforded prominent positions in
school curricula around the world, the way the topics are treated, and the attention
paid to inter-relationships between them, can vary quite significantly. For example, in
some countries there are entirely separate courses on geometry and algebra, while in
other countries, the curriculum alternates topics from the various components of
mathematics. Not only that, but the relative emphases given to geometry and algebra
in school mathematics curricula is also subject to change, with it likely that the
emphasis given to geometry has been reducing relative to algebra over the past fifty
years (Jones, 2000; 2002; Jones & Mooney, 2003)
In some ways these changing relative emphases given to geometry and algebra in
school mathematics reflect what has been, in the history of mathematics, a somewhat
(and sometimes) uneasy relationship between these topics (Atiyah, 2001; Giaquinto,
2007; Kvasz, 2005). According to Atiyah (2001), fundamental to what can seem like
a dichotomy is that:
“Algebra is concerned with manipulation in time, and geometry is concerned with space.
These are two orthogonal, aspects of the world, and they represent two different points of
view in mathematics. Thus the argument or dialogue between mathematicians in the past
about the relative importance of geometry and algebra represents something very, very
fundamental.”
While algebra provides powerful techniques, Atiyah sees a danger that “when you
pass over into algebraic calculation, essentially you stop thinking; you stop thinking
geometrically, you stop thinking about the meaning”. Hence, as Giaquinto (2007)
argues, presenting the relationship between geometry and algebra as a dichotomy is
something of an over-simplification, arguing that “the algebraic-geometric contrast,
so far from being a dichotomy, represents something more like a spectrum” (p240).

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A recognition of the somewhat false dichotomy between geometry and algebra has
led to articles in support of something more like mutual inter-dependence (for
example, Davis, 1998; Diemente, 2000; – though see Farrell & Ranucci, 1973),
including highlighting the role that technology could play (see, for example, Erbas,
Ledford, Orrill & Polly, 2005). A single piece of software, like GeoGebra, that
combines geometry and algebra, could be a powerful tool in mathematics education,
but to have an impact there are implications for the pre-service education, and
inservice professional development, of teachers of mathematics.

IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHER DEVELOPMENT

As Hohenwarter and Lavicza (2007) explain, for the majority of teachers, solely
providing technology is insufficient if technology such as GeoGebra is going to be
fully integrated into their teaching. To date, for teachers using GeoGebra, online
collaboration is being supported via a User Forum (whereby users can help other
users) and a GeoGebraWiki (a way of pooling and sharing teaching materials). A
beneficial next step would to be able to offer professional development for teachers
and coordinate research activities in relation to GeoGebra. In terms of working with
pre-service mathematics teachers, some ideas and examples are provided by Kokol-
Voljc (2007) and by Edwards and Jones (2006).

CONCLUDING COMMENTS
As a freely-available open-source software package that combines both geometry and
algebra, GeoGebra has much to offer. It is perhaps worth concluding with the words
of Edwards and Jones (2006) that utilising software like GeoGebra could inspire a
change to forms of classroom problems “that need high-level thinking, and things that
students may find themselves wanting to follow-up outside of regular school lessons”
(p30).

NOTES
GeoGebra: www.geogebra.org
GeoGebraWiki: www.geogebra.org/wiki
GeoGebraForum: www.geogebra.org/forum
International GeoGebra Institute: www.geogebra.org/IGI

REFERENCES
Atiyah, M. (2001) Mathematics in the 20th Century: geometry versus algebra,
Mathematics Today, 37(2), 46- 53.
Davis, R. (1998) The interplay of algebra, geometry, and logic, Journal of
Mathematical Behavior, 7, 9-28.
Diemente, D. (2000) Algebra in the service of geometry: can Euler’s Line be parallel
to a side of a triangle? Mathematics Teacher, 93(5), 428-431.

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Edwards, J. & Jones, K. (2006) Linking geometry and algebra with GeoGebra,
Mathematics Teaching, 194, 28-30.
Erbas, A., Ledford, S., Orrill, C. & Polly, D. (2005) Promoting problem solving
across geometry and algebra by using technology, Mathematics Teacher, 98 (9), 599-
603.
Farrell, M. A. & Ranucci, E. R. (1973) On the occasional incompatibility of algebra
and geometry, Mathematics Teacher, 66(6), 491-497.
Giaquinto, M. (2007) Visual thinking in mathematics (Oxford: Oxford University
Press).
Hohenwarter, M. (2002) GeoGebra - Ein Software system für dynamische Geometrie
und Algebra der Ebene. Master thesis, University of Salzburg.
Hohenwarter, M. & Lavicza, Z. (2007) Mathematics teacher development with ICT:
towards an International GeoGebra Institute, Proceedings of the British Society for
Research into Learning Mathematics, 27(3), pp49-54.
Hohenwarter, M. & Preiner, J. (2007) Dynamic mathematics with GeoGebra. Journal
of Online Mathematics and its Applications, MAA, ID 1448, vol. 7, March 2007
Jones, K. (2000) Critical issues in the design of the geometry curriculum, in: B.
Barton (Ed), Readings in mathematics education (Auckland, New Zealand,
University of Auckland), pp75-91.
Jones, K. (2002) Issues in the teaching and learning of geometry, in: L. Haggarty
(Ed), Aspects of teaching secondary mathematics (London, Routledge), pp121-139.
Jones, K. & Mooney, C. (2003) Making space for geometry in primary mathematics,
in: I. Thompson (Ed), Enhancing primary mathematics teaching (London, Open
University Press), 3-15.
Kokol-Voljc, V. (2007) Use of mathematical software in pre-service teacher training:
the case of GeoGebra, Proceedings of the British Society for Research into Learning
Mathematics, 27(3), pp55-60.
Kvasz, L. (2005) Similarities and differences between the development of geometry
and of algebra, in C. Cellucci & D. Gillies (Eds) Mathematical reasoning and
heuristics (London, King’s College Publications).

BSRLM GEOMETRY WORKING GROUP

The BSRLM geometry working group focuses on the teaching and learning of geometrical
ideas in its widest sense. Suggestions of topics for discussion are always welcome. The
group is open to all.

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