Desarrollo de la competencia de modelación matemática en estudiantes de séptimo básico a partir de un fenómeno astronómico

Abstract

In last few years, various studies have highlighted significant deficiencies in the development of mathematical modeling competence in school contexts. The lack of acquisition of this mathematical competence has revealed the difficulties students face relating real-world phenomena to mathematics. This study presents the results of an investigation aimed at characterizing the sub-competencies of mathematical modeling that emerge in seventh-grade students (11 and 12 years old) as they en-gage in a modeling task related to an astronomical phenomenon. To this end, ma-thematical modeling is used as the theoretical framework to analyze the modeling processes carried out by the students, with a qualitative methodological approach. The results demonstrate the development of mathematical modeling competence through the identification of sub-competencies that emerge as students’ progress through the phases of the modeling cycle when modeling the lunar cycle, allowing them to understand the relationship between the illuminated surface of the Moon and the moments in which it orbits the Earth.