How mathematical is conceptual understanding?

Paper in proceeding, 2005

Conceptual understanding has widely been suggested as the key first link to gain a solid physics understanding. By the means of empirical data from interviews with first year university students around force and friction problems, we argue that conceptual understanding has to be developed in conjunction with a structural understanding of the potential mathematical solution to master the area more thoroughly. Such structural understanding does neither necessarily seem to follow or precede a conceptual understanding.