Eileen Brinkman

History of Math
Dr. Safranski
4/8/18

Algebra with Symbols

As a Math Education major, I have taken many classes focused on how to teach mathematical

concepts to my future students as well as different classes to further my knowledge in math. During my

field placements I have taught both Algebra I and Geometry. From my experience, the students have had

a difficult time understanding the concepts in Algebra I. Often times the students do not understand

what to solve for, what variables stand for, or what step to execute first when encountering a problem.

Through reading Math Through the Ages I have learned a deeper understanding of where math came

from and how it has developed. Chapter 8, “Writing Algebra with Symbols,” lays out the history of how

people used algebra even before there were the symbols we use today in our math classes. Learning

where algebraic symbols come from, as well as studying some of the previously used symbols can give

students a better understanding of what the purpose of studying algebra is and allow them to appreciate

the symbols used today.

Algebra is much more than just its symbols. Even though the symbols are crucial to Algebra,

students must understand that these symbols are only the top layer. What do they represent? Why do

we need symbols? What do we use them for? An algebra problem is simply “a question about numerical

operations and relations in which an unknown quantity must be deduced from known ones.” This

“question” can be written in two different ways. It can be written out in words or it can be written using

numbers and symbols. Often times students are unable to convert the problems written out in words to

problems using symbols. For example, if the sentence says, “two more than the square of a number is

ten,” many times students are confused and do not know where to start. Some students have difficulty

changing that sentence into the equation x 2 + 2 = 10. Having a lesson solely based on converting

sentences to equations would be very helpful, especially in the beginning of Algebra I. Creating a lesson
focused on this would also provide an opportunity to discuss some of the history behind these symbols

as well as talk about some of the other symbols used before the symbols we have today were chosen.

For this lesson, “the symbols of algebra,” I would start with an introduction to a select few societies

and how they used their own symbols to represent things. I would plan to teach this lesson after we

have been working with equations and solving for the unknown for a few weeks. This way the students

understand what is being taught but still have some room to grow and master solving for the unknown.

We would spend a day learning about the different societies and going over their different symbols and

then take the next class period completing different problems with the new learned symbols and

information. First we would discuss the difference between rhetorical writing and symbolic style writing.

Rhetorical writing is writing out equations in words while symbolic is writing with symbols. The unknown

is referred to the “thing” in rhetorical writing. I would then write a few examples down from the book

and have students attempt to change them into words. These are the two examples:

1. The cube and seven things less five squares is equal to the root of six more than the thing.
2. What thing together with ten of its roots yields thirty-nine.

As a class we would discuss the answer to each one and see how well the students did. I would then

move on to talk about the different symbols used by mathematicians before there were the set symbols

used today. The first mathematician would be Luca Pacioli. Pacioli wrote the Summa de Arithmatica in

1494 and it was the main source of Europe’s introduction to writing algebra with symbols. We would first

go over the different symbols used. They are as followed: co = unknown, ce = squared, cu = cubed, Rv =

square root and terms under the square root, m = minus, p = plus and the numbers all represent

numbers. Luca Pacioli also used “.” to separate symbols. I would then write “cu.m.5.ce.p.7.co-----

Rv.co.p.6.” I would give students a few minutes to work out the problem and convert it from the symbols

Pacioli used to the symbols used today. The downfall to this type of notation is the fact that only one

unknown can be represented at a time. The second “mathematician” would be the mathematicians of

16th-century Germany. During this time some of the symbols we use today were introduced. The + and –
signs are adopted at this time as well as the square root symbol. The group of numbers under the square

root sign was indicated by dots before and after. The equal sign was represented by the word in Latin or

German. The different powers of numbers and symbols would be indicated by different symbols. I would

write an equation on the board with these symbols and give the students time to work through it. Lastly,

we would discuss Descartes’s version of “x3-5x2+7x=sqrt(x+6).” After discussing what answers they

arrived at for Descartes’s version, we would compare and contrast the three ways we had learned with

each other as well as compare and contrast each of the versions with the system we have now. My hope

for this lesson is to provide a greater understanding of what algebra is as well as have students

appreciate the simplicity of the system we use today. I think this lesson will reiterate the point that

algebra is focusing on finding the unknown and using different symbols and equations to do that.

I remember learning basic algebra concepts in high school and not really understanding the

point of it what we were learning. Many times students can be lost and confused because they are

unsure of the importance of the material being covered. Taking time to teach students the history

behind the concepts, allows the students a different perspective and a greater appreciation of what is

being taught. If I were to teach this lesson without giving the historical background, it would simply be

learning through memorization instead of learning to understand. Many teachers teach so their students

can pass tests. Because of this, teachers portray material in a way that students can quickly memorize it

well enough for test, which results in quickly forgetting the material the next day. Teaching the history

behind a concept could make the difference between straight memorization and learning to understand

for a student. Teaching students the history behind a concept gives them something to connect the

lesson to. The informal lesson shows how this plays out. As a student participating in this lesson, I would

be able to connect that symbols make up algebra, but algebra is much more than simply symbols. I

would think of more than converting words to equations, I would think of the many different ways this

could be done and what symbols each mathematician used for their representations. I also think
teaching a small amount of math history gives the students a short break from solving math problems.

Learning is much more effective when it involves a combination of ways to learn the material. I am now

more likely to consider having an end of the year project for my students that involves researching

different cultures and ways that math has evolved through out time. This would also give them a “short

break” from “regular” math, but would still teach them something about the concepts being covered. I

do believe having them complete this project would give them a better understanding of the concept

they researched. Hopefully this better understanding can be shared with other students and the learned

information will be even greater because of the interest in where math came from.

Before learning about the history of math and where things came from, I had never put much

thought into why we have certain symbols or why we do things certain ways. I think knowing the history

provides me with a more solid foundation of what I am teaching. Understanding why topics are a certain

way or how they have developed through the years gives me a different perspective of math as well as a

better way to teach and explain concepts to my students. This applies to not only algebra but all math

classes. For example, an earlier chapter focused on the number system and the difference between base

60 and base 10. Explaining the difference to students provides them with background information as

well as gives them a better understanding of why things are the way they are such as time on a clock. I

think learning the history behind the specific math I am teaching will not only improve my teaching but

increase my desire to teach it. Last year I took a Euclidean geometry class that used Euclid’s Elements.

Learning and using the techniques Euclid used really solidified my understanding of geometry. It is also

just an interesting idea to think this topic has been around for so long. Learning the history of math is

something I now find useful and important and I hope to expand my knowledge in order to better teach

my future students.