Mathematical skills > Assessment of proof

Question 52
How can students effectively type free-form proof for human marking online?

Mathematics contains a lot of symbolism which is difficult and time consuming to type. Popular solution include “pallets” of special symbols and equation editors, or mark-up such as LaTeX. Both solutions form a serious distraction not present on paper.

What motivates this question?

Perhaps the most significant challenge for computer aided assessment of mathematics is automatic assessment of a complete mathematical argument. Automatic assessment presupposes the student’s answer is in a form which can be automatically assessed. There are two clear options for student input of their free-form proof: writing and optical character recognition, and typing. If student can effectively type their answer, or be taught to type their answer effectively, then we have on piece in place for wider CAA.

What might an answer look like?

Comparative studies of writing and typing. Care will be needed in training materials to have a fair comparison. Some engineering work might still also be needed to provide editors with efficient input mechanisms for individual mathematical expressions (e.g. algebraic equations), a problem which is necessary to provide tools for effective input of proof but which is just part of the puzzle.

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