Associate Professor

Thesken Hall 205F
513-727-3381
mkhatstp@MiamiOH.edu

Education

• Ph.D., Syracuse University, 2016
• M.S., Syracuse University, 2013
• M.A., Marshall University, 2010
• B.Sc., University of Swaziland, 2008

Experience

• Associate Professor, Miami University, 2022-present
• Assistant Professor, Miami University, 2016-2022
• Teaching Mentor, Syracuse University, 2015-2016
• Teaching Assistant, Syracuse University, 2012-2016
• Teaching Assistant, Oklahoma State University, 2010-2012
• Teaching Assistant, Marshall University, 2008-2010

Research Interests

• Students’ thinking about fundamental topics/concepts in calculus and differential equations.
• Opportunity to learn about fundamental topics/concepts in calculus provided by undergraduate mathematics textbooks and classroom instruction.

Publications

Selected Peer-reviewed Journal Publications  

Mkhatshwa, T. (2021). A quantitative and covariational reasoning investigation of students’ interpretations of partial derivatives in different contexts. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology. https://doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2021.1958941

Mkhatshwa, T. (2021). A study of calculus students’ difficulties, approaches, and ability to solve multivariable optimization problems. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology. https://doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2021.1927227

Mkhatshwa, T. (2020). Calculus students’ quantitative reasoning in the context of solving related rates of change problems. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 22(2), 139-161.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2019). Students’ quantitative reasoning about an absolute extrema optimization problem in a profit maximization context. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 50(8), 1105-1127.

Mkhatshwa, T., & Doerr, H. (2018). Undergraduate students' quantitative reasoning in economic contexts. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 20(2), 142-161.

Mkhatshwa, T., & Mummert, A. (2011). Modeling super-spreading events for infectious diseases: Case study SARS. IAENG International Journal of Applied Mathematics, 41(2), 82-88.

Selected Peer-reviewed Conference Proceedings

Mkhatshwa, T. (2022). Exploring students’ problem posing abilities and difficulties in differential equations. In Karunakaran, S. S., & Higgins, A. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 24th Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (pp. 1254-1255). Boston, Massachusetts.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2020). A quantitative reasoning study of student-reported difficulties when solving related rates problems. In Sacristán, A.I., Cortés-Zavala, J.C. & Ruiz-Arias, P.M. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 42nd Annual Conference of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (pp. 991-995). Mazatlán, Mexico.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2020). Students’ understanding of partial derivatives. In Karunakaran, S. S., Reed, Z., & Higgins, A. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (pp. 430-439). Boston, Massachusetts.

Mkhatshwa, T. P. (2019). An exploratory study of calculus students’ understanding of multivariable optimization problems. In Jankvist, U. T., Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, M., & Veldhuis, M. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 11th Congress of the European Society for Research in Mathematics Education (pp. 2606-2613). Utrecht, Netherlands.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2019). A quantitative reasoning perspective on students’ understanding of differentials: An exploratory study. In Otten, S., Candela, A. G., de Araujo., Z., Haines, C., & Munter, C. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 41st Annual Conference of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (pp. 882-886). St. Louis, Missouri.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2018). Business calculus students’ interpretations of marginal change in economic contexts. In Hodges, T. E., Roy, G. J., & Tyminski, A. M. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 40th Annual Conference of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (pp. 564-571). Greenville, South Carolina.

Mkhatshwa, T., & Jones, S. R. (2018). A study of calculus students’ solution strategies when solving related rates of change problems. In Weinberg, Rasmussen, Rabin, Wawro, & Brown (Eds.), Proceedings of the 21st Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (pp. 408-415). San Diego, California.

Mkhatshwa, T. (2017). Undergraduate students’ reasoning about marginal change in a profit maximization context: The case of Carlos and Mark. In E. Galindo & J. Newton (Eds.), Proceedings of the 39th Annual Conference of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (pp. 761-764). Indianapolis, Indiana.

Mkhatshwa, T., & Doerr, H. M. (2017). Students’ quantitative reasoning in a revenue maximization context. In Weinberg, Rasmussen, Rabin, Wawro, & Brown (Eds.), Proceedings of the 20th Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (pp. 755-762). San Diego, California.

Mkhatshwa, T., & Doerr, H. M. (2016). Opportunity to learn solving context-based tasks provided by business calculus textbooks: An exploratory study. In T. Fukawa-Connelly, N. Infante, M. Wawro, & S. Brown (Eds.), Proceedings of the 19th Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education (pp. 1124-1132). Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Mkhatshwa, T. P., & Doerr, H. M. (2015). Students’ understanding of marginal change in the context of cost, revenue, and profit. In Krainer, K., & Vondrová, N. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 9th Congress of the European Society for Research in Mathematics Education (pp. 2201-2206). Prague, Czech Republic.