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50 Years of ERIC
50 Years of ERIC
The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) is celebrating its 50th Birthday! First opened on May 15th, 1964 ERIC continues the long tradition of ongoing innovation and enhancement.

Learn more about the history of ERIC here. PDF icon

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The Isis Problem as an Experimental Probe and Teaching Resource
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Greer, Brian; De Bock, Dirk; Van Dooren, Wim – Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 2009
The Isis problem, which has a link with the Isis cult of ancient Egypt, asks: "Find which rectangles with sides of integral length (in some unit) have area and perimeter (numerically) equal, and prove the result." Since the solution requires minimal technical mathematics, the problem is accessible to a wide range of students. Further, it is…
Descriptors: Mathematics Education, Mathematics Teachers, Educational Resources, Mathematics
Solving the Pentagon Problem.
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Greer, Brian – Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 1996
Describes one possible approach to solving the following problem: given a pentagon ABCDE in which triangles ABC, BCD, CDE, DEA, and EAB all have area=1, is the area of the pentagon determined? (AIM)
Descriptors: Area, Geometric Concepts, Geometric Constructions, Mathematical Concepts
The Mathematical Modeling Perspective on Wor(l)d Problems.
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Greer, Brian – Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 1993
An exploratory study assessed the degree to which 13- and 14-year olds (n=100) adjusted assumptions of direct proportionality suggested by surface structure of word problems. Virtually no errors were made on "straightforward" items, but many students showed no adjustment for realistic constraints on complex items. (Contains 21 references.) (MKR)
Descriptors: Context Clues, Context Effect, Foreign Countries, Intermediate Grades