Errors in learning of financial mathematics

Abstract

This article focuses on the study of mathematical errors made by university students who study Financial Mathematics as part of a degree in Economics or Business Administration. In this work, we adopt an empirical-inductive procedure for the analysis of the errors and their subsequent identification and classification, interpreting them later with respect to the knowledge of financial mathematics that it is intended to develop. The results have showed that some of the identified errors are also found in studies carried out with secondary students, confirming their persistence and pointing out their effects on different aspects of the subject of Financial Mathematics. In addition, we have identified other errors linked to contents such as the rational numbers and the temporal dimension, which may affect the understanding of basic ideas in the subject of Financial Mathematics.