Computer Use and Visualization in Students' Construction of Reflection and Rotation Concepts

The effects of a dynamic instructional environment (based on use of The Geometer's Sketchpad , N. Jackiw, 1991 , in a computer lab) and visualization on eighth‐grade students' ( N = 241) construction of the concepts of reflection and rotation were investigated. Also investigated were the effects of the environment on students' two‐ and three‐dimensional visualization. After controlling for initial differences, it was concluded that students experiencing the dynamic environment significantly outperformed students experiencing a traditional environment on content measures of the concepts of reflection and rotation, as well as on measures of two‐dimensional visualization. The students' environment did not significantly affect their three‐dimensional visualization.