63 results
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2. Identities of Mathematics Teacher Educators in a 'Hybrid' Mathematics and Mathematics Education Department
- Author
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA), Marshman, Margaret, Bennison, Anne, and Goos, Merrilyn
- Abstract
Prospective secondary mathematics teachers in Australia are typically taught by mathematics educators and mathematicians who work in different faculties and seldom collaborate--a situation that can lead to conflicting views about how to teach mathematics. This paper reports on findings from semi-structured interviews with three mathematics teacher educators in a hybrid mathematics/mathematics education department. Valsiner's zone theory is used to analyse how their beliefs, institutional context and professional learning opportunities shape their identities as MTEs. Findings reveal that the MTEs had developed similar beliefs within supportive institutional context but drew on different sources of professional learning.
- Published
- 2022
3. Children's Drawings as a Source of Data to Examine Attitudes towards Mathematics: Methodological Affordances and Issues
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA), Quane, Katherine, Chinnappan, Mohan, and Trenholm, Sven
- Abstract
Ascertaining young children's attitudes towards mathematics has its challenges. Methodologically, limitations exist regarding the type of research techniques that can be employed. The use of children's drawings as a data source has both methodological affordances and issues. The study was conducted with 106 children in Years 2 and 3 from three South Australian primary schools. This paper identifies some of the methodological affordances and issues of using children's drawings to ascertain and describe their attitudes towards mathematics. [This paper is the third in a symposium of three papers. For the first paper, "Drawings Reveal Young Students' Multiplicative Visualisation," see ED616196. For the second paper, "Investigating Students' Drawings as a Representational Mode of Mathematical Fluency," see ED616197.]
- Published
- 2021
4. 'Maths Inside': A Project to Raise Interest in Mathematics
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Coupland, Mary, Angelini, Marco, Prescott, Anne, Schuck, Sandy, Rai, Tapan, and Lee, Carmen
- Abstract
In this paper, we provide an overview of the "Maths Inside" project, funded by the Australian Maths and Science Partnership Program (AMSPP). The overall aim of the AMSPP is to improve uptake and participation of students in mathematics and science at secondary and tertiary levels. In this research project, we aim to improve student interest in mathematics and support mathematics teachers in their professional learning, through provision of rich and investigative learning resources, including video case studies of CSIRO scientists and mathematicians. Data collection on the outcomes of the project is ongoing and will be reported in subsequent papers.
- Published
- 2017
5. The Beliefs about Mathematics, Its Teaching and Learning of Those Involved in Secondary Mathematics Pre-Service Teacher Education
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Marshman, Margaret and Goos, Merrilyn
- Abstract
Secondary mathematics pre-service teachers often have different experiences of mathematics and its teaching and learning during their initial teacher education. This paper documents the beliefs about mathematics, its teaching, and its learning, of mathematicians and mathematics educators who teach secondary mathematics pre-service teachers. The beliefs of the surveyed sample of eighty-two academics and differences between groups were characterised using descriptive statistics and one-way comparisons between groups ANOVA. Generally, respondents had a Problem-solving view of mathematics and those with education backgrounds were more in agreement with that method of teaching.
- Published
- 2018
6. Large-Scale Professional Development towards Emancipatory Mathematics: The Genesis of YuMi Deadly Maths
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Cooper, Tom, and Carter, Merilyn
- Abstract
This paper describes the genesis of YuMi Deadly Maths, a school change process that has been used in over 200 schools to develop mathematics teaching and learning to improve students' employment and life chances. The paper discusses the YuMi Deadly Maths approach to mathematics content and pedagogy, implemented through a process of PD and school change, and looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the process and the challenges it faces.
- Published
- 2016
7. Investigating Mathematics Students' Motivational Beliefs and Perceptions: An Exploratory Study
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Orellana, Claudia, and Barkatsas, Tasos
- Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the factorial structure of motivation and perception items from a student survey utilised as part of the Reframing Mathematical Futures II (RMFII) Project. Data was collected in 2017 from 442 students in Years 7 to 10 from various different States across Australia. An exploratory factor analysis identified four factors which were consistent with the studies the items were adapted from: Intrinsic and Cognitive Value of Mathematics, Instrumental Value of Mathematics, Mathematics Effort, and Social Impact of School Mathematics. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) also revealed that there were statistically significant differences between Year Level and State for some of these factors.
- Published
- 2018
8. Peer Observation as Professional Learning about Mathematical Reasoning
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Herbert, Sandra, and Bragg, Leicha A.
- Abstract
Mathematical reasoning features in curriculum documents around the world, but is understood and enacted poorly by teachers in classrooms. We explore teachers' noticing of reasoning during observed lessons. Two teams of primary teachers in Canada and Australia worked to plan, deliver, and observe lessons intended to include reasoning. They observed each other teaching a lesson that was planned with the assistance of a researcher, and later, a researcher observed each post-lesson discussion. Given the reported benefits of teachers' noticing of reasoning during peer-observed lessons, targeted professional learning support is required to further enact teachers' peer discourse to facilitate mathematical reasoning.
- Published
- 2017
9. A Primary Teacher's Developing Understanding of Mathematical Reasoning
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Loong, Esther Yook-Kin
- Abstract
To support teachers in their quest to incorporate reasoning as a mathematical proficiency as espoused in the Australian Curriculum: Mathematics, a professional learning research project using demonstration lessons was carried out. This paper reports on the impact of demonstration lessons on one participating teacher's pedagogical knowledge about reasoning. The growth in this teacher's knowledge was analysed using a phenomenographic framework established to evaluate teachers' development in mathematical reasoning. The results show that demonstration and subsequent trial lessons contributed to her growth.
- Published
- 2014
10. 'I Just Need to Believe in Myself More': The Mathematical Self-Belief of Year 7 Students
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Dimarakis, Nicole, Way, Jenni, Bobis, Janette, and Anderson, Judy
- Abstract
Self-belief can directly predict students' academic motivation and achievement. Research indicates that mathematical self-belief often decreases during the middle years of schooling. This study explored the mathematical self-belief development of 15 Year 7 students. Data were gathered from a survey, a mathematics achievement test and interviews. Results were analysed and interpreted from a multilevel perspective. Findings indicate that student-level characteristics, such as persistence, were the most influential on mathematical self-belief. While class-level contexts, such as ability grouping, were less influential, interpersonal relationships with teachers played a major role. [The research reported in this paper was part of a larger project supported by an Australian Research Council Linkage grant.]
- Published
- 2014
11. Developing Students' Functional Thinking in Algebra through Different Visualisations of a Growing Pattern's Structure
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Wilkie, Karina J, and Clarke, Doug
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This design-based research project investigated the development of functional thinking in algebra for the upper primary years of schooling. Ten teachers and their students were involved in a sequence of five cycles of collaborative planning, team-teaching, evaluating and revising five lessons on functional thinking for their students over one year. This paper focuses on two aspects of the study related to developing students' functional thinking by visualising the structure of a growing pattern in different ways. An appendix presents the assessment task used at the beginning of the lesson sequence.
- Published
- 2014
12. Empowering Andrea to Help Year 5 Students Construct Fraction Understanding
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Baturo, Annette R
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This paper provides a glimpse into the positive effect on student learning as a result of empowering a classroom teacher of 20 years (Andrea) with subject matter knowledge relevant to developing fraction understanding. Having a facility with fractions is essential for life skills in any society, whether metricated or non-metricated, and yet students the world over are failing in this aspect of mathematics (Queensland Studies Authority, 2002; TIMSS, 1997). Understanding fractions requires comprehension and coordination of several powerful mathematical processes (e.g., unitising, reunitising, and multiplicative relationships) (Baturo, 1997, 2000). While this paper will report on student learning outcomes, its major focus is to tell Andrea's story and from this to draw implications for pre-service education and teaching. A section on Cognitive Diagnostic Common Fractions Test is appended. (Contains 2 tables and 2 figures.) [For complete proceedings, see ED489632.]
- Published
- 2004
13. Cross-Country Comparisons of Student Sense Making: The Development of a Mathematics Processing Framework
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Lowrie, Tom
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This paper identifies the strategies Singaporean and Australian students (n = 1,187) employed to solve a 24-item mathematics test. A mathematics-processing framework is proposed, which describes the way primary-aged students successfully process graphic and non-graphic mathematics tasks. There were distinct differences in the way in which the students from the respective countries approached the tasks with the Singaporean students more likely to employ strategies that were explicitly taught and practiced in the classroom, whereas the Australian students tended to employ a more diverse range of approaches.
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- 2013
14. Students and Real World Applications: Still a Challenging Mix
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Galbraith, Peter
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Rhetoric about the importance of students being equipped to apply mathematics to relevant problems arising in their lives, individually, as citizens, and in the workplace has never been matched by serious policy or curricular support. This paper identifies and elaborates authenticity implications for addressing this issue, and describes aspects of a modelling challenge in which students were mentored to engage in problem solving located in real world settings. Characteristics of the approach and selected student responses to the challenge are provided.
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- 2013
15. The 'Make It Count' Project: NAPLAN Achievement Evaluation
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Forgasz, Helen J., Leder, Gilah C., and Halliday, Jennifer
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"Make It Count" was a large scale, government-funded, project aimed at improving the mathematics learning of Indigenous students. NAPLAN Numeracy test results were used as one measure of the effect of the program. In this paper we report on the performance on these tests of Indigenous students in schools involved in the project. Group data and, where available, longitudinal data for individual students are reported.
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- 2013
16. Translating between and Within Representations: Mathematics as Lived Experiences and Interactions
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Chigeza, Philemon
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Students develop understanding of mathematics when they translate between and within different mathematical representations. This paper explores a student-generated story and content descriptors from the Australian Curriculum: Mathematics to highlight how primary school students can represent mathematical concepts through exploring the links between everyday physical objects, pictures, oral/written language, models and mathematical symbols. This active experience enhances the students' capacity to represent mathematical concepts and ideas, symbolise these, and eventually learn to abstract and generalise.
- Published
- 2013
17. Use of Learning Trajectories to Examine Pre-Service Teachers' Mathematics Knowledge for Teaching Area and Perimeter: Emerging Issues
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Butterfield, Barbara, Forrester, Tricia, McCallum, Faye, and Chinnappan, Mohan
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A current concern is student learning outcomes and these are largely a function of teachers' knowledge and their practice. This position paper is premised on the notion that certain knowledge is required for the teaching of mathematics. An exploration of literature demonstrates that such professional knowledge development can be supported by Learning Trajectories (LT). We propose to use LT as theoretical lens to examine pre-service teachers' Content and Pedagogical Content knowledge and advance a research design.
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- 2013
18. An Exploration into Growing Patterns with Young Australian Indigenous Students
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Miller, Jodie, and Warren, Elizabeth
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This paper presents the results from an initial lesson in a series of design experiments focusing on young Indigenous students' understandings of growing patterns. Indigenous students in Year 2 and 3 (n = 16) participated in pre lesson activities and a 45 minute lesson on growing patterns. Tentative findings from this study suggest that; (a) Year 2 and 3 Indigenous students are capable of working with growing patterns; (b) contextual artefacts assisted with communication; and (c) gesture played an important two-fold role in the lessons and communication of the mathematics experienced.
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- 2012
19. Abstracting by Constructing and Revising a 'Partially Correct Construct': A Case Study
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Williams, Gaye
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This study draws on data from a broader video-stimulated interview study of the role of optimism in collaborative problem solving. It examines the activity of a Grade 5 student, Tom, whose initial constructing activity resulted in a "Partially Correct Construct". Insistent questioning from another group member pressuring for clarification led to Tom developing a "more correct construct" with further potential for revision. This paper raises questions about influences that can stimulate or inhibit construct refinement. (Contains 3 tables.) [For the complete proceedings, "Shaping the Future of Mathematics Education. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (33rd, Freemantle, Western Australia, Australia, July 3-7, 2010)," see ED520764.]
- Published
- 2010
20. Student Attitude, Student Understanding and Mathematics Anxiety
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Jennison, Michelle, and Beswick, Kim
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This paper reports on two of ten themes that emerged from a study of the impacts of a fraction teaching intervention on the mathematics anxiety and fraction competence of eight Year 8 students. The themes arose from multiple data sources and relate to Student Attitude and Student Understanding. The students identified practical, hands-on activities and group work as impacting positively on their understanding and their confidence in relation to fractions. The influence of improved understanding and confidence was also recorded as positively affecting student attitudes to fractions in particular and mathematics in general. The study highlights the connections between mathematics anxiety among middle school students and their existing understandings of and attitudes towards mathematics. (Contains 2 tables.) [For the complete proceedings, "Shaping the Future of Mathematics Education. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (33rd, Freemantle, Western Australia, Australia, July 3-7, 2010)," see ED520764.]
- Published
- 2010
21. Mathematical Language Development and Talk Types in Computer Supported Collaborative Learning Environments
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Symons, Duncan, and Pierce, Robyn
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In this study we examine the use of cumulative and exploratory talk types in a year 5 computer supported collaborative learning environment. The focus for students in this environment was to participate in mathematical problem solving, with the intention of developing the proficiencies of problem solving and reasoning. Findings suggest that students engaged in exploratory talk may more regularly attempt the use of technical (tier 3) mathematical vocabulary.
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- 2015
22. 'I Was in Year 5 and I Failed Maths': Identifying the Range and Causes of Maths Anxiety in First Year Pre-Service Teachers
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia and Wilson, Sue
- Abstract
Mathematics anxiety affects primary pre-service teachers' engagement with and future teaching of mathematics. The study aimed to assess the level and range of mathematics anxiety in first year pre-service teachers entering their teacher education course, and to investigate the sources of this anxiety as perceived and identified by them. Data collection methods included the RMARS survey, and Critical Incident Technique. The results indicate that the most common negative impacts on pre-service teacher mathematical self-concept involved experiences with teachers. However, their current mathematics anxiety is most commonly aroused under testing or evaluation situations.
- Published
- 2015
23. Who Is Really Interested in Mathematics? An Investigation of Lower Secondary Students' Mathematical Role Models
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Lee, Kester, and Anderson, Judy
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Declining participation rates in advanced mathematics courses and STEM-related occupations has been an issue in Australia for some time, particularly for females. As students continue to disengage with mathematics and complain about its usefulness, it is important to explore what we can do to stem the tide of departing students. One area worthy of investigation is students' interest in mathematics including whether they are able to name a mathematical role model in their lives. Forty-three students in Years 7 to 9 from three schools were asked to name people they knew who were interested in mathematics. There was a strong bias towards male figures (44 to 17), particularly fathers and male peers.
- Published
- 2014
24. The Effect of Language, Gender and Age in NAPLAN Numeracy Data
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Wilson, Tim, and Barkatsas, Tasos
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This study investigates the relationship between students ability to answer reduced language dependency mathematical questions with their overall numeracy level. It investigates whether a student's success at reduced language mathematical questions translates into better overall numeracy scores. It was found, students have up to two years advancement if able to correctly answer reduced language dependency questions. This phenomenon was clearly apparent in the overall findings, but was most pronounced at the Year 3 level test, and for female students.
- Published
- 2014
25. Identifying the Mathematics Middle Year Students Use as They Address a Community Issue
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Marshman, Margaret
- Abstract
Middle year students often do not see the mathematics in the real world whereas the "Australian Curriculum: Mathematics" aims for students to be "confident and creative users and communicators of mathematics" (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA] 2012). Using authentic and real mathematics tasks can address this situation. This paper is an account of how, working within a Knowledge Producing Schools' framework, a group of middle year students addressed a real community issue, the problem of the lack of a teenage safe space using mathematics and technology. Data were collected for this case study via journal observations and reflections, semi-structured interviews, samples of the students' work and videos of students working. The data were analysed by identifying the mathematics the students used determining the function and location of the space and focused on problem negotiation, formulation and solving through the statistical investigation cycle. The paper will identify the mathematics and statistics these students used as they addressed a real problem in their local community.
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- 2018
- Full Text
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26. Second-Year Pre-Service Teachers' Responses to Proportional Reasoning Test Items
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Livy, Sharyn and Herbert, Sandra
- Abstract
A recent international study of pre-service teachers identified that proportional reasoning was problematic for pre-service teachers. Proportional reasoning is an important topic in the middle years of schooling and therefore it is critical that teachers understand this topic and can rely on their Mathematical Content Knowledge (MCK) when teaching. The focus of this paper is second-year Australian primary pre-service teachers' MCK of real number items related to ratio, rate, proportion and proportional reasoning. This paper reports on strengths and weakness of pre-service teachers' MCK when responding to test items; including a method suitable for analysing responses to five items and ranked by three levels of difficulty. The results revealed insights into their correct methods of solutions and common incorrect responses, identifying difficulty, where multiplication and division were required. The method of coding test items by difficulty ranking may assist with developing an appropriate learning trajectory, which will assist pre-service teachers develop their MCK of this and other difficult topics. (Contains 7 tables and 4 figures.)
- Published
- 2013
27. Tracking Structural Development through Data Modelling in Highly Able Grade 1 Students
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Mulligan, Joanne, Hodge, Kerry, Mitchelmore, Mike, and English, Lyn
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A 3-year longitudinal study "Transforming Children's Mathematical and Scientific Development" integrates, through data modelling, a pedagogical approach focused on mathematical patterns and structural relationships with learning in science. As part of this study, a purposive sample of 21 highly able Grade 1 students was engaged in an innovative data modelling program. In the majority of students, representational development was observed. Their complex graphs depicting categorical and continuous data revealed a high level of structure and enabled identification of structural features critical to this development.
- Published
- 2013
28. Developing Mathematical Resilience among Aboriginal Students
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Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia, Thornton, Steve, Statton, Joanne, and Mountzouris, Sophie
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The processes of mathematisation, the use of mathematical models and representations of real world contexts, and contextualisation, the embedding of mathematical ideas into a meaningful context, are key aspects of students' mathematical learning. We present a conceptual framework for thinking about mathematising and contextualising developed as part of the "Make it Count," a national project that seeks to develop an evidence base of practices that improve Indigenous students' learning in mathematics. We suggest that an intentional focus on mathematisation and contextualisation helps to make mathematics meaningful, particularly for Indigenous students. In particular we suggest that such a focus has the potential to enhance the mathematical resilience of Aboriginal students.
- Published
- 2012
29. Laying Groundwork for an Understanding of Academic Integrity in Mathematics Tasks
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Seaton, Katherine A.
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To date, the way that academic misconduct is manifested in undergraduate mathematics coursework has been unexamined in the literature, with the consequence that policy and preventive education can fail to address it appropriately. This paper describes the particular features of the responses expected in mathematical tasks and provides concrete examples of what lapses of integrity look like in this context. The intent is to lay groundwork for discussion and a response to this issue from within our discipline.
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- 2019
- Full Text
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30. Harnessing Critical Incidents for Learning
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Patahuddin, Sitti Maesuri and Lowrie, Tom
- Abstract
A critical incident is a situation or event that holds significance for learning, both for the students and teachers. This paper presents four examples of critical incidents from a Year 7 teacher's lesson excerpts in Indonesia involving teaching of fractions, to show how they shaped classroom situation, brought forward elements of conflict, and created learning opportunities. Three examples are drawn from the lesson using a web-based applet (Examples 1, 2 and 3). The illustration of these critical incidents will be followed by a discussion on how to harness them in order to develop students' understanding or be used as a challenge as well as a learning process for teachers. This paper highlights the effectiveness of a web-based applet for displaying pictorial representations in an interactive manner.
- Published
- 2015
31. Computer Algebra Systems: Permitted but Are They Used?
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Pierce, Robyn and Bardini, Caroline
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Since the 1990s, computer algebra systems (CAS) have been available in Australia as hand-held devices designed for students with the expectation that they will be used in the mathematics classroom. The data discussed in this paper was collected as part of a pilot study that investigated first year university mathematics and statistics students' understanding of functions and variables, as well as the use of technology in their last year of school (Year 12). Did their teachers discourage the use of CAS for algebra? Did the students actually learn how to use CAS to support their work in algebra or to support their learning of algebra? Did they find that, given the level of algebra, it was faster to work with pen-and-paper than to correctly enter algebraic expressions? The results reported in this paper are based on items included in a pilot survey. They raise questions rather than provide answers. The results do however tell us that, at least from these first year university students' recollection of their Year 12 experience, most or their VCE mathematics teachers made little use of CAS as a pedagogical tool in their classes, despite the institutional approval and encouragement indicated by both the State's curriculum and assessment for the past decade. A better understanding of the barriers to teachers using CAS technology to enhance their pedagogy is needed and then perhaps more effective professional learning programs can be provided for teachers.
- Published
- 2015
32. Teachers' Perceptions on Declining Student Enrolments in Australian Senior Secondary Mathematics Courses
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Hine, Gregory
- Abstract
The study of higher-level secondary mathematics is considered essential for national economic growth, competitiveness in research and innovation, and further education opportunities. Yet the reported trend within Australian secondary schools is that enrolments in higher-level mathematics are declining and have been in a state of decline for over a decade. The little available and recent literature published on this phenomenon has looked at why secondary students elect to study higher-level mathematics courses, both from the perspective of teachers and students. This research paper presents findings as to why Heads of Learning Area: Mathematics (HOLAMs) believe capable secondary students elect not to enrol in those courses. Data were collected from 50 secondary schools across the three sectors (Government, Catholic, Independent) in Western Australia. The key findings are that capable students do not enrol in higher-level mathematics courses because these courses are not required for university entrance, other courses appear to be less rigorous and more viable, and the Australian Tertiary Admissions Ranking (ATAR) score can be maximised by taking one mathematics course instead of two courses.
- Published
- 2018
33. On the Use of History of Mathematics: An Introduction to Galileo's Study of Free Fall Motion
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Ponce Campuzano, Juan Carlos, Matthews, Kelly E., and Adams, Peter
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In this paper, we report on an experimental activity for discussing the concepts of speed, instantaneous speed and acceleration, generally introduced in first year university courses of calculus or physics. Rather than developing the ideas of calculus and using them to explain these basic concepts for the study of motion, we led 82 first year university students through Galileo's experiments designed to investigate the motion of falling bodies, and his geometrical explanation of his results, via simple dynamic geometric applets designed with GeoGebra. Our goal was to enhance the students' development of mathematical thinking. Through a scholarship of teaching and learning study design, we captured data from students before, during and after the activity. Findings suggest that the historical development presented to the students helped to show the growth and evolution of the ideas and made visible authentic ways of thinking mathematically. Importantly, the activity prompted students to question and rethink what they knew about speed and acceleration, and also to appreciate the novel concepts of instantaneous speed and acceleration at which Galileo arrived.
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
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34. The Impact of Within-School Autonomy on Students' Goal Orientations and Engagement with Mathematics
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Carmichael, Colin, Muir, Tracey, and Callingham, Rosemary
- Abstract
School autonomy has been identified as having an impact on a school's performance, yet less has been reported about the effect this has on students' goal orientations and engagement with mathematics. In a national study conducted in schools across Australia, measures of school autonomy were collected from teachers and school leaders, along with students' perceptions of the mastery and performance goal orientations of their classrooms and personally using surveys. Schools were identified as having high or low levels of autonomy on the basis of school leaders' responses. For the study discussed in this paper, a subset of 14 schools for which matched student and teacher data were available provided students' responses to a variety of variables including goal orientations. The findings suggested students in high-autonomy schools were less likely to hold a personal performance approach and avoidance goals than their peers in low-autonomy schools. Fifty-five case studies conducted in 52 schools provided evidence of some of the practical aspects of these findings, which have implications for systems, schools and teachers.
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- 2017
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35. Different Disciplines, Different Transitions
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Wood, Leigh and Solomonides, Ian
- Abstract
There is not just one mathematics taught at university level, nor is there one group of students. Mathematics is taught differently depending on the discipline and the perceived background of the student. There is engineering mathematics for the students heading towards engineering degrees, life science mathematics for those heading towards biology degrees and so on. This paper considers the phases of transitions that students experience as they embark on a course of study and then go on to professional life. We make inferences about the ways the curriculum should be designed to alleviate the difficulties of these phases as well as to take account of the capabilities that graduates will require in the workplace. It is not only where students are coming from that affects their learning but where they are heading to, in combination with their perceptions of that destination. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)
- Published
- 2008
36. Modelling Transformations of Quadratic Functions: A Proposal of Inductive Inquiry
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Sokolowski, Andrzej
- Abstract
This paper presents a study about using scientific simulations to enhance the process of mathematical modelling. The main component of the study is a lesson whose major objective is to have students mathematise a trajectory of a projected object and then apply the model to formulate other trajectories by using the properties of function transformations. It was hypothesised that situating the lesson in a modelling environment would enhance the meaning of transformations that are not often conceptualised in mathematics textbooks. The lesson is guided by inductive reasoning. As a medium of data gathering, a free simulation called "Projectile Motion" was used (available at http://phet. colorado.edu/sims/projectile-motion/projectile-motion_en.html). The inductively organised stages of the activity described in this paper were conducted with a group of (N = 22) mathematics students in a high school in Texas. The students' verbal reflections upon this type of novel learning environment supported the study hypothesis. Their perception of the process of studying function transformations has evolved into a meaningful and purposeful experience. Although, the unit was developed for high school math curriculum in the US, its objectives reflect the aims and scope of Australian math curriculum. The Victorian Certificate of Education Study Design (VCAA, 2010) states that students should model investigate and solve problems in unfamiliar situations. The proposed lesson supports this aim.
- Published
- 2013
37. Tablet Technology to Facilitate Improved Interaction and Communication with Students Studying Mathematics at a Distance
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Galligan, Linda, Hobohm, Carola, and Loch, Birgit
- Abstract
Teaching and learning of mathematics is challenging when lecturer and students are separated geographically. While student engagement and interaction with the course, with other students and with the lecturer is vital to mathematics learning, it is difficult to facilitate this electronically, because of the nature of mathematics. With tablet technology now becoming ubiquitous and many new and inexpensive models entering the market, it is timely to investigate how the distance student experience in mathematics can be impacted by the use of tablet technologies. This paper reports on a case study of a first year mathematics course at a regional Australian university, where distance students were provided with affordable tablet PCs. An investigation of the impact of this technology on engagement and interaction is at the centre of this study. Evidence from journals, students' assessment submissions, screen snippets, student communication and formal student evaluations is analysed. It was found that distance students acknowledged the value of tablets for communicating mathematics, particularly for assignment submission and feedback, but they also recognized the potential for easier interaction with content and the lecturer. This paper highlights the specific benefits and challenges tablet PCs present to the learning experiences in mathematics within the distance context. (Contains 10 figures.)
- Published
- 2012
38. Repeating Patterns: Strategies to Assist Young Students to Generalise the Mathematical Structure
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Warren, Elizabeth, Miller, Jodie, and Cooper, Thomas
- Abstract
This paper focuses on very young students' ability to engage in repeating pattern tasks and identifying strategies that assist them to ascertain the structure of the pattern. It describes results of a study which is part of the Early Years Generalising Project (EYGP) and involves Australian students in Years 1 to 4 (ages 5-10). This paper reports on the results from the early years' cohort (Year 1 and 2 students). Clinical interviews were used to collect data concerning students' ability to determine elements in different positions when two units of a repeating pattern were shown. This meant that students were required to identify the multiplicative structure of the pattern. Results indicate there are particular strategies that assist students to predict these elements, and there appears to be a hierarchy of pattern activities that help students to understand the structure of repeating patterns. (Contains 9 tables.)
- Published
- 2012
39. Mathematics Engagement in an Australian Lower Secondary School
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Norton, Stephen
- Abstract
The importance of actively engaging in mathematics discourse in order to learn mathematics is well recognized. In this paper, I use Basil Bernstein's concepts of pedagogic discourse to document and analyse academic learning time of students in Years 8 and 9 at a suburban lower secondary school: in particular, for what proportion of class time students reported being academically engaged, their explanations for this engagement and how they felt about the discourse. It was found that many students had disengaged from mathematical endeavour as a result of the failure of the instructional discourse either to engage students or to serve the purpose of developing discipline-specific content knowledge. The reasons for this relate to the overemphasis on mundane mathematics resulting in some students lacking the cognitive tools to engage with the concepts and having neither the intrinsic nor instrumental motivation to persist with secondary school esoteric mathematics. The implications for mathematics curriculum development are discussed.
- Published
- 2017
- Full Text
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40. How Useful Are Closed Captions for Learning Mathematics via Online Video?
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Tisdell, Chris and Loch, Birgit
- Abstract
Closed captioning of instructional videos is a topic that has not seen much discussion despite its importance for hearing-impaired students and recent legal ramifications if videos are not appropriately captioned. In particular, it is unclear what best practice in captioning videos should be to benefit all learners in disciplines such as mathematics with a reliance on the development of visual explanation while providing audio narration. In this paper, we report on a study undertaken at an Australian university, to investigate the perceived level of usefulness of captions and their automatic translations in a mathematics course. We discovered that students broadly agreed that captions are a useful learning feature: to allow flexibility of where and when a video is watched, but also to help understand speaker accents, and clarify explanations that are difficult to hear in the recording. Due to the high levels of use and perceived educational benefits of closed captions in online video but limited literature, there is a significant need for new research in this area. An urgent discussion is needed to explore how students engage with closed captions, how they may support learning, and to investigate implications on instructional design of mathematical videos.
- Published
- 2017
- Full Text
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41. Scoring Points: Goals for Real World Problem Solving
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Galbraith, Peter
- Abstract
This paper is presented in two parts. Through an example the first part takes up the issue of applying mathematics to situations that form part of the life context of students--the priority expressed in three curriculum statements presented. Then, noting the particular point in time--development of a National Curriculum for Mathematics--the second part goes on to address broader curriculum issues that a purely illustrative exercise in real world problem solving might not normally engage. The chosen example relates to a real world question that is located within the domain of Australian Rules Football, and it is recognized that while this provides a familiar, and often an emotionally engaged context in the majority of states, it may not do so for all. The specific mathematical and modelling issues raised in this particular problem have no essential connection with the discussion in the final part of the paper (other than in providing illustrations), where issues regarding the place of modelling and applications in curricula are considered. For that purpose, the football example can be replaced by any authentic modelling problem. (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.)
- Published
- 2012
42. Giving More Realistic Definitions of Trigonometric Ratios
- Author
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Bhattacharjee, Pramode Ranjan
- Abstract
Trigonometry is a well known branch of Mathematics. The study of trigonometry is of great importance in surveying, astronomy, navigation, engineering, and in different branches of science. This paper reports on the discovery of flaws in the traditional definitions of trigonometric ratios of an angle, which (in most cases) make use of the most unrealistic concept of negative length (or distance). With a view to getting rid of the misleading concept of negative length (distance), the definitions of novel trigonometric ratios (falling within the purview of Year 9 to Year 10A in the "Australian Curriculum: Mathematics") have been offered first with the help of vector algebra and then subsequently employed to derive some important formulae of trigonometry. This paper first considers the traditional branch of trigonometry, examines it to see that it is very much unrealistic at its root level and finally it gives birth to the definitions of novel trigonometric ratios of an angle with the help of vector algebra so as to uproot the most unrealistic concept of negative length. It deals with a debatable issue regarding the misleading concept of negative length (distance) prevailing at the basic level of defining trigonometric ratios of an angle in the traditional literature and in fact reflects a discovery of real truth. (Contains 3 figures.)
- Published
- 2012
43. Writing (and Reading) Journal Articles for Professional Development: APMC--A Great Place to Start
- Author
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Marshall, Linda and Swan, Paul
- Abstract
This article is intended to assist people who have never written for a journal, or who perhaps have never even thought about doing so. In this article, the authors provide some advice for budding Australian Primary Mathematics Classroom (APMC) authors. Information on where to start, what's already been done, what will be in the paper, who will read the paper, what happens after the paper is submitted, and the technical aspects of submitting your work is included.
- Published
- 2011
44. 'No Wonder Out-of-Field Teachers Struggle!': Unpacking the Thinking of Expert Teachers
- Author
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Beswick, Kim, Fraser, Sharon, and Crowley, Suzanne
- Abstract
In this paper, the authors describe the initial stage of developing a framework designed to support out-of-field, less experiences or isolated mathematics and science teachers to make decisions about the use of resources in their teaching. The process highlighted the complexity and extent of the knowledge on which expert teachers draw in making such decisions and thus underscored the enormity of the task of teaching out-of-field. The eventual product, the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics: Critical Appraisal for Teachers (STEMCrAfT) framework has proven useful not only for the target audience, but also as a tool for colleagues who take on a mentoring role. The authors begin with a brief description of teacher knowledge before describing the project and then presenting what they unearthed about expert teachers' thinking and knowledge.
- Published
- 2016
45. Integrating Technologies into Mathematics: Comparing the Cases of Square Roots and Integrals
- Author
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Kissane, Barry
- Abstract
Two decades ago, in an award-winning paper, Dan Kennedy (1995) likened learning mathematics to climbing a tree, for which there was only one way to climb: up a large and solid trunk. In the limited time that is available, many students give up the climb, impede others, fall off the trunk, or fail to climb the tree sufficiently well. In the case of integration, the solid trunk seems to be heavily laden with algebraic manipulation. Kennedy suggested that technology might provide help in the form of ladders to climb the tree in other ways. Just as the use of technology allowed us to bypass the numerical requirements to calculate square roots (and other aspects of basic mathematics), it now seems time to look carefully at the use of computer algebra to reconsider how much of the algebraic trunk is really needed to help students climb the tree, look around and start to explore the branches of the tree that look interesting to them.
- Published
- 2016
46. Adding Some Perspective to de Moivre's Theorem: Visualising the 'n'-th Roots of Unity
- Author
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Bardell, Nicholas S.
- Abstract
Traditionally, "z" is assumed to be a complex number and the roots are usually determined by using de Moivre's theorem adapted for fractional indices. The roots are represented in the Argand plane by points that lie equally pitched around a circle of unit radius. The "n"-th roots of unity always include the real number 1, and also include the real number -1 if "n" is even. The non-real "n"-th roots of unity always form complex conjugate pairs. This topic is taught to students studying a mathematics specialism (ACARA, n.d., Unit 3, Topic 1: Complex Numbers) as an application of de Moivre's theorem with the understanding that the roots occur in the complex domain. Meanwhile, in the Cartesian plane, a closely related topic deals with the solution of polynomials (ACARA, n.d., Unit 2, Topic 3: Real and Complex Numbers). The aim of this paper is to demonstrate visually the connection between the reduced polynomial "y" = "x"[superscript "n"] - 1 in the Cartesian plane and the resulting n-roots which invariably appear in the Argand plane. There is no contradiction here: the reader will find a three-dimensional surface representation of Equation (2) provides the full link between both the Cartesian and Argand planes, and illustrates not only the location of the roots in relation to the original equation but also shows why they occur with conjugate pairings. Examples will be provided for the cases "n" = 3, "n" = 5 and "n" = 8 which will be sufficient to illustrate the general pattern that emerges. The approach adopted here is a natural extension of the surface visualisation techniques first presented by Bardell (2012) for quadratic equations.
- Published
- 2015
47. Making Connections
- Author
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Turner, Paul
- Abstract
This article aims to illustrate a process of making connections, not between mathematics and other activities, but within mathematics itself--between diverse parts of the subject. Novel connections are still possible in previously explored mathematics when the material happens to be unfamiliar, as may be the case for a learner at any career stage. The geometrical configuration explored in this paper, now known as "Ford circles" after Lester R. Ford, Sr. (1886-1967), is related to ideas about mutually tangent circles that were studied by, among others, Apollonius of Perga in the third century BC and by René Descartes in the 17th century. This exposition is intended to conjure the thoughts of a hypothetical mathematician attempting to find and explain some connections, in the process exploring some lines that turn out to be unproductive, and making observations that are really non sequiturs, before eventually achieving some success. The author suggests that seemingly innocent mathematical fragments can have connections to many related ideas. If a teacher is in possession of a broad subject knowledge, then the likelihood seems high that it is possible to draw out useful connections in the classroom or in well-designed projects and assignments. For this reason, the author claims that an ever-widening subject knowledge is of utmost importance in a teacher's program of professional development.
- Published
- 2015
48. Diversifying Our Perspectives on Mathematics about Space and Geometry: An Ecocultural Approach
- Author
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Owens, Kay
- Abstract
School mathematics tends to have developed from the major cultures of Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe. However, indigenous cultures in particular may have distinctly different systematic ways of referring to space and thinking mathematically about spatial activity. Their approaches are based on the close link between the environment and cultural activity. The affinity to place strengthens the efficient, abstract, mathematical system behind the reference and its connection to the real world of place and a holistic worldview. This paper sets out to present an overview of various approaches to aspects of space and geometry by drawing on linguistic and cultural literature, my collaborative research in Papua New Guinea, and from personal communications with indigenous colleagues in Australia and elsewhere. This diversity provides a challenge by which teachers can deconstruct their thinking about mathematics and subsequently to review the content of teaching and to be more responsive to the diversity of cultural backgrounds of students. To assist with recognising ecocultural mathematics on space and geometry, 4 principles are established and discussed on language structures, reference lines and points, measures of space and worldviews and interpretations of space as place.
- Published
- 2014
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
49. Visualising the Roots of Quadratic Equations with Complex Coefficients
- Author
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Bardell, Nicholas S.
- Abstract
This paper is a natural extension of the root visualisation techniques first presented by Bardell (2012) for quadratic equations with real coefficients. Consideration is now given to the familiar quadratic equation "y = ax[superscript 2] + bx + c" in which the coefficients "a," "b," "c" are generally complex, as shown explicitly in Equation (1), which is presented in the article, with the usual notation.
- Published
- 2014
50. Developing Box Plots While Navigating the Maze of Data Representations
- Author
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Duncan, Bruce and Fitzallen, Noleine
- Abstract
The learning sequence described in this article was developed to provide students with a demonstration of the development of box plots from authentic data as an illustration of the advantages gained from using multiple forms of data representation. The sequence follows an authentic process that starts with a problem to which data representations provide the solution. The advantage of using box plots is that they allow clear and efficient comparison of related data sets. In this case, students are given a maze on paper and timed while they complete it. This produces the first set of data. They then attempt the maze again, expecting that their time to do this will decrease. The need to compare these two data sets arises from the question, "Did the group improve their maze times on their second attempt?"
- Published
- 2013
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