PRINCIPLES FOR DETERMINING THE DOMAIN OF FUNCTIONS, y=f(x)

Abstract

The teaching-learning process is complex as it deals with human minds and the object of instruction, that is, the content to be addressed between the teacher and the student. Nothing is ever final when it comes to a process; it is always a continuation of operations aimed at minimizing difficulties during problem-solving. The problem lies in the fact that students often lack a synthesis of rules for determining the domain of functions . The absence of these rules hinders the immediate determination of the domain of functions. Therefore, the following objective was established: to develop a set of principles for determining the domain of the function . These principles are intended to guide the exploration of the domain of real functions of a real variable within the corresponding curricular unit. This case is considered a research object, as several consulted bibliographies do not provide a synthesized set of rules to assist students in determining the domain of functions. The interpretative paradigm was adopted to define the scope of the research, aiming to produce a theoretical framework that synthesizes basic rules for determining inverse functions in Mathematical Analysis I, during the early years of training in Exact and Natural Sciences. The findings revealed a lack of synthesized theoretical approaches to minimize students’ difficulties in determining the domain of functions.