Argumentation and proof in mathematics: analysis of a study conducted with blind students

Abstract

This paper presents part of a masters degree research (AYALA, 2016) and its purpose is to analyze answers
given by blind students in mathematical problems that normally evoke visual reference. The subjects of this
research are four blind students in the final years of elementary school. Being held in Benjamin Constant
Institute, the research uses semi-structured interviews, where problems that normally refer to a visual scope
were discussed. The studies of Harel & Sowder (1998, 2007), with their research about argumentation and
proof, as well as Vygotsky (1993), with his studies about the blind child psychology, were primordial as
theoretical foundation, but many other authors contributed. The results indicate that the blind make use of
concrete argument schemes, being the haptic perception the prevalent characteristic.