UREM-ULB :
Unité de Recherche sur l’Enseignement des Mathématiques

Jean-Paul Doignon attire notre attention sur la page web du College of Arts and Science, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign

Mathematics

Models of a Bygone Era

Display reveals how mathematics was taught in the pre-digital age

« The principles of mathematics have not changed. The tools used to teach them during the past century, however, have changed drastically, and it so happens that the University of Illinois has the second largest historical collection of math models in the world. They’re now on display for anyone curious about the evolution of this discipline.

Some 355 math models dating back to the early 20th century are being displayed on each level of Altgeld Hall and online. Constructed primarily in Germany, the oddly shaped models indicate how Illinois students learned mathematics long before the advent of calculators and computers. »

The Altgeld Math Models

Source : http://www.las.illinois.edu/news/2014/mathmodels/