C' (x) = C(x+1)-C(x)? - Students' connections between the derivative and its economic interpretation in the context of marginal cost

Abstract

International audienceThe derivative concept plays a major role in economics. Therefore, students of economics should have a proper understanding of the concept and its application in economics. One important competence for these students is to interpret the derivative in economic contexts. In books of economics the derivative is commonly interpreted as amount of change while increasing the production by one unit. However, from a mathematical point of view, this interpretation does not directly correspond to the derivative. In the study presented here, it was investigated to what extent students can make an adequate connection between the derivative as a mathematical concept and its economic interpretation mentioned above