Solving Optimization Problems with Dynamic Geometry Software: The Airport Problem

Abstract

This paper describes how the author’s students (in-service and pre-service secondary
mathematics teachers) enrolled in college geometry courses use the Geometers’ Sketchpad (GSP) to gain insight to formulate, confirm, test, and refine conjectures to solve the classical airport problem for triangles. The students are then provided with strategic hints to develop a mathematical proof to justify the conjecture discovered with the help of GSP.