ERIC Number: EJ732555
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005-Sep
Pages: 33
Abstractor: Author
Reference Count: 0
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1954
Students' Early Mathematical Representation Knowledge: The Effects of Emphasizing Single or Multiple Perspectives of the Rational Number Domain in Problem Solving
Moseley, Bryan
Educational Studies in Mathematics, v60 n1 p37-69 Sep 2005
This study examined changes in 26 fourth-grade students' early conceptions of rational number representations as a function of receiving one of two curricular interventions. The first group of 12 students received a curriculum that emphasized constructing knowledge through extended problem solving with a single perspective of the rational number domain based on part-whole relations. A second group of 14 students received a curriculum that emphasized a more conceptually diverse multiple perspective view of the domain through problem solving with operator and ratio relations. Analyses of the students' rational number knowledge before and after the interventions indicated that students in the single perspective group produced organizations of knowledge that more frequently diverged from a formal domain analysis than those produced by students in the multiple perspective group. Further, students in the single perspective group increased their focus on superficial surface features. Alternatively, students in the multiple perspective group demonstrated an increased focus on operations that more frequently reflected the underlying mathematical relation conveyed by the representation. The findings indicate that an early exposure to more diverse perspectives of rational numbers assists students in developing more interconnected and viable representation knowledge for rational numbers.
Descriptors: Problem Solving, Numbers, Elementary School Students, Grade 4, Constructivism (Learning), Mathematical Concepts, Mathematics Instruction
Springer. 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-348-4505; e-mail: service-ny@springer.com ; Web site: http://www.springerlink.com.
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Grade 4
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: N/A

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