Interpredations Skills of Undergraduate Students Towards the Definition of Limit

The purpose of this study was to find out how undergraduate students interpret the definition of limit. For this purpose, understanding of students related to the formal definition of limit was examined in detail. This study was designed according to the holistic multiple case study of qualitative research designs and carried out at the beginning of spring semester of 2014-2015 academic year. The participants of the study (n=60) were sophomore (n=31) and senior (n=29) students studying in the department of primary mathematics teacher training in a state university in the province of Eastern Anatolia of Turkey. Data collection tool of the study was Understanding Protocol for Limit Definition (UPLD) developed by the researchers to reveal how students interpret the definition of limit. The content analysis was used in the analysis of data obtained from the views of the students. As a result of the study, it was determined that most of the students had difficulty in comprehending the formal definition of limit. It was possible to suggest that most of the students were not aware of the intuitive meanings underlying the formal definition of limit. It was reckoned that this case was the result of the difficulties in the process of interpreting and comprehending the meaning of the topological concepts and symbols (epsilon-delta) in the definition of limit. It was also determined that the students ignored the fact that the point where limit was searched was the accumulation point