Spreadsheets, Graphics Calculators and Mathematics Education

Over recent years, spreadsheets have been increasingly recognised as having a role in teaching and learning mathematics, but have continued to suffer the limitation of requiring access to computers. This paper summarises some of the potential benefits of spreadsheet use and briefly assesses some of the available research about it in schools. A spreadsheet application for a calculator is described and interpreted in terms of its capacity to handle the essential features of spreadsheets. The comparative merits of calculator and computer spreadsheets are discussed. Some ways in which calculator spreadsheets might be used for teaching and learning mathematics are outlined.