derive vs proof

[Guest]

I just made a test and everyone's pissed me off at me because they said that derive does not mean proof. Well I don't know so I am asking you math geniuses with more experience than me that when proving the deriviative of sin and tan, are you using the word derive or proof?

 

[stapel]

I wouldn't take "deriving" as being as "strong" a process as "proving", but that's just my gut; I don't have authoritative definitions to back me up. Proofs have rules and requirements. Derivations are, I think, more a matter of figuring or simplifing from a given point. A derivation would likely often be useful in figuring out how to prove something, though.

It might help if you clarified what you're talking about. You say you "made" a test. Do you mean that you're the instructor, and your collegues are questioning your instrument's design and/or wording, suggesting that you revise it before administering it to your students? You refer to "proving the deriviative[sic] of sin[sic] and tan[sic]". What does this mean? Are you finding "derivatives", or deriving some identity, or what?

Thank you.

Eliz.

 

[Guest]

Well most of the students I graded on the test I adminstrated got it right. Relatively 90% of them proved the deriviative of tan x by using the deriviatives of cos and sin and then proved sin by using the limit process. However, the other 10% weren't very clear on what derived meant. (I was teaching a section in the book for my calc bc class like other students have to ... i am a student too) Anyway,those 10% are furious with me that it should have be taken out, yet I showed them examples prior to the test date how to derive these problems. i dunno...

and yea my colleagues are questoning my wording ... only 10% of them.. there was a lot of perfect papers... 6 and 3 of those perfect papers are the top 3 students in ranking of our hs... they're geniuses when it comes to math and physics

but then again, i am asking...and uh also we're proving the deriviatives

 

[stapel]

...we're proving the deriviatives

You're the instructor, and you don't know how to spell "derivative"...?

Ninety percent of your students may have figured out what it was that you meant, while the other ten percent answered the question you actually asked. Given the quality of your posts in this thread, and the fact that we still don't know what you asked them and what you'd wanted for an answer, I hesitate to venture any further than that.

Eliz.

 

[tkhunny]

So, we're deriving derivatives? Or are we proofing proofs?

If you are writing the exam, you MUST be prepared for students to take your questions other than you have imagined. If they have a valid argument, you cannot withhold credit. If you are going to write a question that deals with your specific, esoteric opinion, that MAY be fine, but the students deserve a VERY CLEAR advance warning concerning how that problem will be graded.

It is YOUR responsibility to write so that none can misunderstand. I have to agree with Eliz.' hint, I find everything you have written here quite confusing. How many students are we talking about? I'm feeling suspicious about the 90%.