Abstract

ALVARADO, Hugo; ESTRELLA, Soledad; RETAMAL, Lidia  and  GALINDO, Maritza. Probabilistic intuitions in engineering students: implications for the teaching of probability. Relime [online]. 2018, vol.21, n.2, pp.131-156. ISSN 2007-6819.  https://doi.org/10.12802/relime.18.2121.

The intuitions and heuristics on the probability are evaluated in 257 engineering students through a questionnaire of eight closed items, and they analyze the arguments of 148 of them in an open item. The results indicate a high variation in the qualitative assignment of the probabilistic intuition in situations of uncertainty and the existence of correct and incorrect intuitions of the students. We propose a teaching of probability that relates theoretical and practical understanding of meanings of probability, from the intuitive to the axiomatic, through the qualitative estimation of probabilistic intuitions as a degree of personal belief, and the explicit confrontation of diverse heuristics with formal knowledge of probability.

Keywords : Meanings of probability; uncertainty; intuition; heuristics; education in engineering.

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