Inquiry and mathematical modelling to decode an ancient roman message in Secondary Education

Abstract

This article presents the design of a learning situation to promote the emergence of evidence of the joint use of the inquiry and mathematical modelling processes. This learning is part of a larger and still ongoing research project that aims to describe how the processes of inquiry and mathematical modelling interact and mutually enrich each other, to characterise the mathematics teaching and learning activities that promote the development of inquiry and mathematical modelling processes, and the competencies and skills students need to use when they deal with tasks of this kind. The learning situation presented here has not yet been implemented, but it serves as an example of a mathematical activity situated in an interdisciplinary context, close to the students and challenging for them, thus promoting more meaningful learning of mathematics.