To cite this article: Blidi S. Stemn (2008) Building middle school students' understanding of proportional reasoning through mathematical investigation, Education 3-13, 36:4, 383-392To link to this article: http://dx.This article describes and shares an innovative pedagogical practice that holds promise in contributing to the teaching and learning of proportions in middle school. The teaching and learning of mathematics with understanding framework was used as a vehicle to help 21 seventh grade students reason proportionally. The findings of this unit suggest that the classroom culture, which encouraged the students to make connections between their existing and new ideas and reflecting and communicating their thinking, contributed to their emerging understanding of proportions. The use of an authentic and non-routine task involving liquid measurements also heightened their interest, curiosity and enthusiasm, thereby contributing to their excitement about the mathematics they were learning.
Book Reviews 1709 emotional and behavioral disorders. His wide variety of teaching experiences in both segregated and regular classroom settings, as well as his experiences as an administrator, have been instrumental in serving as a springboard into his research investigating the needs of students "at risk." Other research interests center on teacher education, and educational leadership and change with emphasis placed on practices that foster Inclusive schools.
This case study examined the impact of a field-based mathematics methods on the specialized content knowledge (SCK) for teaching area and perimeter with specific focus on representational competence and questioning strategies. Three preservice elementary teachers (PSETs) were purposefully selected from the 15 students who were enrolled in the course. They first solved the Rectangular Garden Task outside of class and presented their solutions for a whole class discussion. They then planned four lessons based on the task and taught it to students in their field placements. The data sources consisted of their solutions to task, lesson plans, video recordings of their teaching, field notes and their written reflections. The results revealed that they all showed growth in their representational competence and questioning strategies as a result of engaging in solving the task and teaching the four lessons. However, they experienced challenges in asking open-ended and follow-up questions and wait time.
As teachers who are interested in integrating non-Western mathematics activities into our lessons, we decided to teach number patterns through the Vedic (pronounced “Vaydik”) matrix. This stimulating activity, which is found in Vedic mathematics from India, investigates patterns using the numbers 1 through 9. The premise underlying the Vedic matrix is that numbers form symmetrical “shapes” (Nelson, Joseph, and Williams 1993). This approach to teaching developmentally appropriate mathematics content contrasts with the “tourist curriculum” approach in which students view multicultural mathematics activities as fun but not as essential for mathematical learning (Davidson and Kramer 1997). The tourist curriculum, according to Derman-Sparks as cited in Davidson and Kramer, trivializes the curriculum and does not address the real-life problems and experiences of different cultures.
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