Improving Grade 7 Students’ Achievement in Initial Algebra Through a Technology-Based Intervention

Abstract

Digital technology plays an increasingly important role in daily life, mathematics education and algebra education in particular. To investigate the effect of a technology-rich intervention related to initial algebra on the achievement of 12-13 year old Indonesian students, we set up an experiment. The experimental group's intervention focused on equations in one variable and is characterized by an alternated use of paper-and-pencil and digital work, and by the intertwining of word problems and bare algebra problems. The control group was taught in a regular way without digital tools. Students from eight classes in four schools took part in a pre-test and a post-test. The results showed that the experimental group's (n=131) gain score was significantly higher than the control group's (n=119) score, with a medium effect size. Also, a school factor was found to affect student achievement. The qualitative analysis of student written and digital work during the teaching experiment corroborated the quantitative results. Both results confirm the effectiveness of this type of technology-rich intervention for enhancing student achievement in algebra.

Enhancing young children’s understanding of a combinatorial task by using a duo of digital and physical artefacts

“…The duration of an activity was addressed by Jupri, Drijvers, and Van Den Heuvel-Panhuizen (2015). In their case, the intervention lasted for more than 5 h. However, the students in their study did not use a duo of artifacts but either a digital or a physical artifact.…”

Using 'Paddy Field' Graphic Organiser to Enhance Students' Ability in Expanding and Simplifying Algebraic Expressions

“…Students who have reached the middle grades and are still experiencing difficulty with mathematical concepts are often provided with rote approaches only, keeping them from gaining the conceptual frameworks necessary for success with algebraic tasks (Dacey & Gartland, 2019). One of the interventions to deal with these students" difficulty is by supporting it with digital manipulative and helping students expand brackets (Jupri, Drijvers, & van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, 2015).…”

Online Formative Assessment in Mathematics Education: Prospective Primary Teachers’ Understanding of Rational Numbers

“…The role ranges from learning management (Hoyos, 2012) to implementing online assessments or tests (Drijvers et al, 2014). Many studies have shown that teachers and students have a positive attitude toward using digital technology in education (Afify, 2019;Drijvers et al, 2014;Jupri, Drijvers, and van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, 2015;Putra, Witri, and Yulita, 2019). The exploitation of technology for online assessment, when used effectively, can be particularly valuable in the assessment of 21 st -century learning (Boitshwarelo et al, 2017).…”