About

Mathematical proof is a particular type of argument that is central to the study of university mathematics. In these courses, students spend a substantial amount of time reading proofs. They read proofs in their mathematics textbooks and their professors’ lecture notes, and they read and listen to the proofs their professors present in class. Presumably, a central reason that students are expected to read and study proofs is that they can come to understand these proofs and learn from them. However, the extent to which this pedagogical goal is realized is largely unknown.

The Proof Comprehension Research Group is a collective of academics in the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas whose research focuses on the reading and presentation of mathematical proofs, as performed by university students and mathematicians. Our research interests include assessing the reading comprehension of mathematical proofs, comparing the ways in which expert and novices read proofs, and evaluating the extent to which certain variations in the presentation of proofs (e.g. type of content, medium, organization of information) affect comprehension.

We meet every two weeks to discuss recent publications, our individual work, and our collaborative research. On these pages you find information about us, our recent projects, and different research opportunities within our group.