Michèle Artigue facts for kids

Michèle Artigue, born in 1946, is a French expert in how mathematics is taught. She used to be a professor at Paris Diderot University. She also led the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction.

Early Life and Learning

Michèle Artigue was born in 1946 in Bordères-sur-l'Échez, a small town in the Pyrenees mountains. Her mother was a kindergarten teacher. Michèle always loved mathematics.

She went to high school in Tarbes, the closest big town. Then, she spent two years in Toulouse preparing for special French universities called grandes écoles. Her sister was a teacher there.

In 1965, she started studying at the Ecole Normale Supérieure. Famous mathematicians like Gustave Choquet and Laurent Schwartz were her teachers. In 1967, her son was born, and her mother moved to Paris to help. Around this time, she became interested in model theory, which is a part of mathematical logic.

In 1968, she joined student protests in France. Many students did not want to take a certain exam. But Michèle finished her exam in 1969. After that, she studied mathematical logic at the University of Paris. When the university split in 1970, she chose to go to Paris Diderot University. She earned her doctorate degree there in 1972.

Her Career Journey

While still a student, Michèle Artigue started working at Paris Diderot University in 1969. Because of the student protests, a new group was formed that year. It was called the Institute of Research in Mathematics Education (IREM). Its director, André Revuz, asked Michèle to join. This is when her interest changed from pure logic to teaching mathematics.

Michèle Artigue led IREM from 1985 to 1988. Then, she became a full professor at the University Institute for Teacher Education of the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne. She also became the head of the mathematics department there.

In 1999, she returned to Paris Diderot University and led IREM again. She retired in 2010 as an emeritus professor. This means she kept her title after retiring. From 2007 to 2010, she was also the president of the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction.

Her Research Work

Michèle Artigue's early research focused on teaching derivatives and integrals. These are important topics in advanced mathematics. She also studied how to show functions using graphs.

Later, she became very interested in using educational technology to teach math. This included how computers and other tools could help students learn. Her research also looked at different ways of teaching.

Awards and Honors

Michèle Artigue was asked to speak at the International Congress of Mathematicians twice. This is a very important event for mathematicians. She spoke there in 1998 and again in 2006.

In 2012, her friends and colleagues held a special conference in Paris to honor her. A book was published from this conference in 2016. It was called The Didactics of Mathematics: Approaches and Issues: A Homage to Michèle Artigue.

Michèle Artigue received the Félix Klein medal in 2013. This award is from the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction. In 2015, she won the Luis Santaló Medal from the Inter-American Committee on Mathematics Education. Also in 2015, she became a Knight of the Legion of Honour. This is a very high award in France.

See also

In Spanish: Michèle Artigue para niños