Understanding development requires assessing the relevant environment: Examples from mathematics learning

Abstract

Although almost everyone agrees that the environment shapes children's learning, surprisingly few studies assess in detail the specific environments that shape children's learning of specific content. The present article briefly reviews examples of how such environmental assessments have improved understanding of child development in diverse areas, and examines in depth the contributions of analyses of one type of environment to one type of learning: how biased distributions of problems in mathematics textbooks influence children's learning of fraction arithmetic. We find extensive parallels between types of problems that are rarely presented in US textbooks and problems where children in the US encounter greater difficulty than might be expected from the apparent difficulty of the procedures involved. We also consider how some children master fraction arithmetic despite also learning the textbook distributions. Finally, we present findings from a recent intervention that indicates how children's fraction learning can be improved.

GESAMSU (Gedrik Saruk Memang Seru) Based Environmental: Effectiveness Of Games On Mathematics Communication Ability Of Elementary School Students

“…Learning by utilizing the surrounding environment can develop pedagogical aspects. Israel-Fishelson & Hershkovitz, 2022;Siegler et al, 2020;T. Susanti et al, 2020).…”

Missing Input: How Imbalanced Distributions of Textbook Problems Affect Mathematics Learning

“…Even in the absence of such changes, many children learn elementary and middle school math reasonably well. This is especially true in countries such as China, where large majorities of middle school students master rational number arithmetic to high degrees of proficiency, despite the fact that distributions of problems in Chinese textbooks closely resemble those in U.S. textbooks (Bailey et al, 2015; Siegler, Im, & Braithwaite, 2020). Understanding relevant concepts, together with extensive practice, seems to allow children to overcome the influence of imbalances in textbooks and other instructional materials (Siegler, Im, Schiller, Tian, & Braithwaite, 2020).…”

Transition & Development Vol. 2

“…Siegler et al. (2020) offer a review and brief illustration of the importance of understanding the learning environment, here with a focus on mathematics learning. Last but not least, Harkness and Super (2020) offer their perspective on the importance of “culture” as a construct, and the value of focusing on individual development in that context.…”