Session Information
09 SES 06 C, Issues in Developing Tests and Diagnostic Tools
Paper Session
Contribution
Spatial ability is a mental activity and also an important element of intellectual ability for individuals (Boulter,1992). As spatial ability is a mental activity, it has been quite difficult for researchers to define it. Literature review illustrates various definitions for spatial ability. According to Lohman (1993)’s definition, it is considered as a skill of generating, retaining, retrieving, and transforming well-structured visual images. The other definition for spatial ability is expressed by Olkun (2003b) as “the mental manipulation of objects and their parts in 2D and 3D space”(p.8).
Researchers conducted many studies in order to investigate whether spatial ability can be developed through applications or it is innate. These studies indicated that spatial ability can be developed when appropriate materials are provided and right applications are conducted (Ben-Chaim, Lappan & Houang, 1988; Bishop, 1973; Sorby & Baartmans, 2000). Especially applications with digital manipulatives (Dixon,1995; Gerson,Sorby, Wysocki & Baartmans, 2001; Olkun,2003a; Raquel,2001) and with three dimensional mathematics materials (Battista,Wheatley&Talsma,1982) are stated to be beneficial in development of spatial ability.
Human beings perceive objects around their environment spatially. The standards of National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM](1989) emphasized the necessity of spatial perception in order to understand, interpret, and evaluate the geometric world. Therefore, spatial ability may affect individual’s lives positively as well as negatively. That is, when the perceived information about the object is not accurate in terms of dimension, direction and distance, the individual may make wrong interpretations and estimations which affect their actions negatively. Based on the literature review, it is concluded that spatial ability is one of the most important factors affecting achievement in many areas including mathematics and geometry (Hannafin,Truxav,Vermillion& Liu,2008; Presmeg,2006). Thus, students’ geometry achievement at school can be affected from their spatial ability level.
Mathematics educators believe that students will be ready to learn many topics under the learning areas of numbers, measurement, and geometry if their spatial ability and geometric reasoning is developed (NCTM,1991). In Turkey, the objectives about spatial ability were added to elementary mathematics curriculum after the education reform started in 2003 (MoNE,2006). These objectives aim to improve spatial abilities of students and they are placed under the Tesselations, Geometric Objects, Symmetry, Transformation Geometry and Projection sub-learning areas at different grade levels. However, it is needed to investigate whether these objectives function well since it is a new application in Turkish context.
The aim of the present study is to look into geometry achievement from spatial ability perspective since there is a close relationship between them. For this purpose the Geometry Achievement Test will be developed for 8th graders. The objectives related to spatial ability are distributed to different grade levels in new elementary curriculum gradually from simple spatial actions to complex spatial actions. This scale will include items measuring all of these objectives. In this way the teacher will obtain a general idea about the spatial ability level and geometry achievement of their students. That is, the test will measure especially the success in spatial actions of students in geometry topics.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Battista, M.T.,Wheatley,G.H.,&Talsma,G.(1982).The importance of spatial visualization and cognitive development for geometry learning in preservice elementary teachers. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education,13(5), 332-340. Ben-Chaim,D.,Lappan,G.,&Houang,R.T.(1988).The effect of instruction on spatial visualization skills of middle school boys and girls. American Educational Research Journal,25(1), 51-71. Bishop,A.J.(1973). Use of structural apparatus and spatial ability: A possible relationship. Research in Education,9, 43-49. Boulter,D.R.(1992).The effects of instruction on spatial ability and geometry Performance (Unpublished master’s thesis). University of Queen’s, Ontario. Gerson,H.B.P.,Sorby,S.A.,Wysocki,A.,&Baartmans,B.J.(2001).The development and assessment of multimedia software for improving 3-D spatial visualization skills. Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 9(2), 105-113. Hannafin,R.D.,Truxaw,M.P.,Vermillion,J.R.,& Liu,Y.(2008). Effects of spatial ability and instructional program on geometry achievement. The Journal of Educational Research,101(3), 148-156. Lohman,D.F.(1993, July). Spatial Ability and G. Paper presented at the First Spearman Seminar, Iowa City, Iowa. Ministry of National Education [MoNE]. (2006). İlkögretim matematik dersi ögretim programı 6-8. sınıflar: Ögretim programı ve kılavuzu Ankara,Turkey. NCTM (1989). Curriculum and evaluation standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. NCTM (1991). Professional standards for teaching mathematics. Reston, VA: The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Olkun,S.(2003a). Comparing computer versus concrete manipulatives in learning 2D geometry. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, 22, 43-56. Olkun,S.(2003b). Making connections: Improving spatial abilities with engineering drawing activities. International Journal of Mathematics Teaching and Learning, April, 1-10. Presmeg,N.(2006). Research on visualization in learning and teaching mathematics. In A. Gutierrez & P. Boero (Eds.), Handbook of research on the psychology of mathematics education: Past, present and future (pp. 205–236). Rotterdam: Sense. Raquel,J.(2001) Thinking in three dimensions: Exploring students’ geometric thinking and spatial ability with the geometer’s sketchpad (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Florida International University, Florida. Sorby,S.A.,&Baartmans,B.J.(2000). The development and assessment of a course for enhancing the 3-D spatial visualization skills of first year engineering students. Journal of Engineering Education, 89(3), 301-307.
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