Dynamic geometry software has played a major role in the renewal of geometry teaching that occurred in recent years. These computer programs produce visually accurate representations of geometrical objects and relations, which can be manipulated with simple point-and-click mouse operations. In this paper we discuss how dynamic geometry programs can be transformed into environments for learning geometrical optics. In particular, we suggest that well known conceptual difficulties frequently encountered by students of this discipline may be reduced with help of dynamic geometry. We show examples of how reflection and refraction phenomena can be studied with these tools.
dynamic geometry; geometrical optics; physics education
