Providing an active learning environment for introducing linear programming

• Autor(a) principal: Fernandes, Susana
• Data de Publicação: 2018
• Outros Autores: Pereira, José C.
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/14551
• topic: Graphical linear programming; Interactive dynamic tool; Active learning

Literature on teaching and learning methods reports strong evidence of the effectiveness of using active learning techniques. This paper presents the GLP-Tool, an example of an active learning technical tool which enables an active learning environment to explore the fundamental concepts of Linear Programming (LP). The GLP-Tool is designed to solve user-defined LP problems with two variables, up to a didactical limit of five constraints (plus the non-negativity constraints). Implemented using the computer algebra system Mathematica, this interactive tool allows the user to dynamically explore different objective functions and sets of constraints. All the GLP-Tool functionalities are represented graphically and updated in real time. These interactive, dynamic, and graphical features make the GLP-Tool a powerful tool for teaching and learning LP, both in undergraduate and high school courses. The GLP-Tool is already freely available online at Sapientia—the repository of the “Universidade do Algarve” (University of the Algarve) and at one of the authors’ ResearchGate web page.