The Components of the Curriculum and Orientations of the Textbook Authors: Elementary Differential Equations and Boundary Value Problems

The main purpose of this study is to explain the curriculum components author's orientations of the textbook "Elementary Differential Equations and Boundary Value Problems". This study seeks to identify the theoretical foundations of teaching differential equations. The analysis of the content of this book, based on the grounded theory, suggests that the context conditions of the authors include “applied differential equations” with the subcategories of "raising students’ interest" and "attending to students’ basic needs." In addition, there are "educational innovation" and the use of "technology" as intervening conditions. With regard to abovementioned circumstances, the authors adopted strategies including: “integrating algebraic, numerical and geometric approaches”, “integrating horizontal mathematization and vertical mathematization”, “integrating differential equations and modeling” and “integrating traditional and modern methods of teaching”. The "integrated curriculum" is a consequence of using these strategies. In fact, the authors of this book are oscillating between the two spectra: “pure structures” and “industrial applications”.