Teaching The Concept Of A Variable With Meaning And Purpose Connecting Contextual Mathematical Thought To The Abstract Symbols And Operations Of Algebra

The concept of an algebraic variable is both important in its own right and foundational for higher levels of math, but many students struggle to comprehend its meaning and purpose, demonstrating a variety of misconceptions about the interpretation of a variable and algebra's relation to arithmetic. Common educational practices fail to support a substantial portion of students in connecting their intuitive cognitive capabilities to the formal external representations (i.e., symbolic notation) of algebra, depriving these students of understanding how and why variables are used, as well as their relevance in solving real-world problems. Previous attempts at improving students' understanding of variables have focused on schematic induction across varied concrete examples or the generalization of relational thinking from arithmetic. While these efforts are important, the approaches do not fully elucidate the purpose of using formal symbols (e.g., letters) to represent unknown numbers. I posit that the clearest way to demonstrate the purpose of symbolic variables is through students' formulation and attempted solution of mathematical problems where multiple unknowns must be represented (and distinguished from each other), such as in a system of equations word problem. Guided by principles from cognitive psychology and educational research, I formulate a framework for encouraging and supporting students' intuitive discovery of the concept of variable using purpose-driven contrast comparisons, active learning techniques such as constructive struggling with intuitive hints, and contextual facilitation of students' natural problem solving for meaningful, concrete tasks. Through this process, variables representations are introduced progressively, first by using more interpretable word equations and later by abbreviating word phrases into letter symbols. I implemented this framework into novel multimedia educational materials, which were iteratively piloted and revised, and then experimentally tested with middle and high school students against a more traditionally structured control version of the materials and a baseline condition. The results from this experimental testing suggest that students who were encouraged to infer the purpose of a variable before its formal representation was introduced went on to provide more correct answers to analogous problems on a post-test given 1-3 weeks later.

Compilation of the research produced by the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME) since its creation in 1976. The first three sections summarize cognitively-oriented research on learning and teaching specific content areas, transversal areas, and based on technology-rich environments. The fourth section is devoted to the research on social, affective, cultural and cognitive aspects of mathematics education. The fifth section includes two chapters summarizing the PME research on teacher training and professional life of mathematics teachers.

This book highlights new developments in the teaching and learning of algebraic thinking with 5- to 12-year-olds. Based on empirical findings gathered in several countries on five continents, it provides a wealth of best practices for teaching early algebra. Building on the work of the ICME-13 (International Congress on Mathematical Education) Topic Study Group 10 on Early Algebra, well-known authors such as Luis Radford, John Mason, Maria Blanton, Deborah Schifter, and Max Stephens, as well as younger scholars from Asia, Europe, South Africa, the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, present novel theoretical perspectives and their latest findings. The book is divided into three parts that focus on (i) epistemological/mathematical aspects of algebraic thinking, (ii) learning, and (iii) teaching and teacher development. Some of the main threads running through the book are the various ways in which structures can express themselves in children’s developing algebraic thinking, the roles of generalization and natural language, and the emergence of symbolism. Presenting vital new data from international contexts, the book provides additional support for the position that essential ways of thinking algebraically need to be intentionally fostered in instruction from the earliest grades.

Results from national and international assessments indicate that school children in the United States are not learning mathematics well enough. Many students cannot correctly apply computational algorithms to solve problems. Their understanding and use of decimals and fractions are especially weak. Indeed, helping all children succeed in mathematics is an imperative national goal. However, for our youth to succeed, we need to change how we're teaching this discipline. Helping Children Learn Mathematics provides comprehensive and reliable information that will guide efforts to improve school mathematics from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. The authors explain the five strands of mathematical proficiency and discuss the major changes that need to be made in mathematics instruction, instructional materials, assessments, teacher education, and the broader educational system and answers some of the frequently asked questions when it comes to mathematics instruction. The book concludes by providing recommended actions for parents and caregivers, teachers, administrators, and policy makers, stressing the importance that everyone work together to ensure a mathematically literate society.

Presents an approach to algebraic geometry of curves that is treated as the theory of algebraic functions on the curve. This book discusses such topics as the theory of divisors on a curve, the Riemann-Roch theorem, $p$-adic completion, and extensions of the fields of functions (covering theory) and of the fields of constants.

Stop algebra from being a mathematical gatekeeper. With rich math tasks, all students can succeed. Every teacher strives to make instruction effective and interesting, yet traditional methods of teaching algebra are not working for many students! That’s a problem. But the answer isn’t to supplement the curriculum with random tasks. Classroom Ready-Rich Math Tasks for Grades 6-12 equips you with a cohesive solution--50+ mathematical tasks that are rich, research-based, standards-aligned, and classroom-tested. The tasks: Are organized into learning progressions that help all students make the leap from arithmetic to algebra Offer students interesting mathematics problems to think about and solve so math is investigative, interactive, and engaging Provide opportunities for you to connect new content to prior knowledge or focus on an underdeveloped concept Engage students in conceptual understanding, procedural practice, and problem solving through critical thinking and application Come with downloadable planning tools, student resource pages, and extension questions Include additional support for students who may be struggling Every learner deserves opportunities to engage in meaningful, rigorous mathematics. And every teacher can develop mathematical thinking and reasoning abilities in students. Part of the bestselling series spanning elementary and middle school, Classroom-Ready Rich Algebra Tasks, Grades 6-12 is a powerful add-on to any core mathematics program at your school.

This advanced mathematical text is a detailed exploration of complex variable theory. It covers topics such as integrals, series expansions, and conformal mapping. While it is a challenging read, it is also a seminal work in the field of mathematics and is still widely studied today. Mathematicians and math students will find this book to be an invaluable resource. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Building on the solid foundation established in Connected Mathematics, over 15,000 students and 300 teachers contributed to the revision. Students will learn mathematics through appealing and engaging problems. The three-step Launch, Explore, Summarize approach helps students develop mathematical thinking and reasoning while practicing and maintaining skills. Users have long praised its appealing and engaging problems and the effective three-step Launch, Explore, and Summarize approach to learning. They've experienced first-hand how the investigations and excercises help students develop mathematical thinking and reasoning while practicing and maintaining skills. And, this research-based curriculum for Grades 6-8 has been funded by the National Science Foundation once again-resulting in Connected Mathematics 2. - Publisher.

In Greek geometry, there is an arithmetic of magnitudes in which, in terms of numbers, only integers are involved. This theory of measure is limited to exact measure. Operations on magnitudes cannot be actually numerically calculated, except if those magnitudes are exactly measured by a certain unit. The theory of proportions does not have access to such operations. It cannot be seen as an "arithmetic" of ratios. Even if Euclidean geometry is done in a highly theoretical context, its axioms are essentially semantic. This is contrary to Mahoney's second characteristic. This cannot be said of the theory of proportions, which is less semantic. Only synthetic proofs are considered rigorous in Greek geometry. Arithmetic reasoning is also synthetic, going from the known to the unknown. Finally, analysis is an approach to geometrical problems that has some algebraic characteristics and involves a method for solving problems that is different from the arithmetical approach. 3. GEOMETRIC PROOFS OF ALGEBRAIC RULES Until the second half of the 19th century, Euclid's Elements was considered a model of a mathematical theory. This may be one reason why geometry was used by algebraists as a tool to demonstrate the accuracy of rules otherwise given as numerical algorithms. It may also be that geometry was one way to represent general reasoning without involving specific magnitudes. To go a bit deeper into this, here are three geometric proofs of algebraic rules, the frrst by Al-Khwarizmi, the other two by Cardano.