Session Information
24 SES 03, Mathematics in Primary Schools
Paper Session
Time:
2009-09-28
14:00-15:30
Room:
NIG, HS III
Chair:
Contribution
Measurement is one of the subjects in mathematics that can be considered as a top agent for connecting mathematics not only with everyday life, but also with other areas (e.g. geometry, statistics). Because of its well-known importance, the study of measurement has been received special attention by the curriculum developers, and it has a special place in every mathematics curriculum. Considering the measurement topics, the topic length, which is the beginning point of almost all math curricula, is critically important for construction of students’ basic ideas about measurement. The research studies pointed out the importance of students’ genuine understanding of length measurement in order to gain more complex measurement concepts and skills such as area and volume where the idea of one dimensional units are broadened into two and three dimensions. In order to make sense of linear measurement as well as establishing bases for area and volume, students need to develop such vital concepts as partitioning, iteration, transitivity, conservation, relation to number, accumulation of distance. Although there have been many studies on students’ difficulties with learning measurement, there is a limited number of studies concerned with the problems/weaknesses of written curriculum that might be the cause of insufficient understanding of measurement. Considering the educational context, Turkey has a centralized education system and thus, all schools around the country implement the same curriculum developed by The Ministry of National Education (MONE). As a candidate member of European Union (EU), Turkey has made substantial changes in the elementary school curricula. Elementary Mathematics Curriculum as well as other subject areas were revised and implemented throughout the country in 2005-06 academic year. The most important difference between new and previous mathematics curriculum may be considered as the shift from a more behavioristic understanding to a more constructivist one (Olkun & Babadogan, 2006). Within the light of the above explanations, the main purpose of this study is to explore how does the length measurement topic (LMT) in the written elementary mathematics curriculum (1st-5th grade) contributes to students’ robust understanding by addressing the following research questions: (a) to what extent the suggested instructional activities for length measurement provide opportunities for meaningful learning? (b) how is the conceptual and procedural framework of length measurement embedded in the curriculum? and (c) how are the subtopics in the length measurement organized in terms of scope and sequence?
Method
This study was designed to explore the adequacy of the LMT in the written Turkish mathematics curriculum related to the development of student’s meaningful learning. The data was collected through the content analysis of the National Elementary Mathematics Curriculum Guide(s) (1st-5th grade) published by the National Board of Education. The guide includes general approach and principles, common skills, learning objectives, suggested instructional activities, and assessment methods. Each mathematics strand is presented in the separate parts of the guide. Since this study is only focused on the topic measurement, specifically length measurement, the other strands (e.g. geometry, number, etc.) were not included in the analysis. The LMT in the written curriculum was carefully analyzed in terms of learning objectives, scope and sequence of the content, the suggested instructional activities, and the balance of conceptual and procedural knowledge embedded in it.
Expected Outcomes
The results indicated that there are totally 34 learning objectives for the topic length measurement. Considering the suggested instructional activities, the conceptual bases of length measurement are more emphasized. As an example, instead of teaching the formula for perimeter first, students, in 3rd grade, are engaged with such hands-on activities as framing a photo by using string. In 4th grade, students are expected to develop the formula. Regarding the organization of The LMT, it starts from simple, and basic; gradually goes to more complex and abstract concepts and skills. For instance, it is expected from students in first grade to recognize the attributes of length by comparing and ordering different objects, and then to develop understanding of unit iteration in 2nd grade. Although the LMT in the written curriculum seems to be well-organized, it is not the only element for students’ robust understanding.
References
Babadogan, C. & Olkun,S. (2006). Program development models and reform in Turkish primary school mathematics curriculum. International Journal for Mathematics Teaching and Learning. Retrieved on December 15, 2008 from http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/journal/default.htm.
Search the ECER Programme
- Search for keywords and phrases in "Text Search"
- Restrict in which part of the abstracts to search in "Where to search"
- Search for authors and in the respective field.
- For planning your conference attendance you may want to use the conference app, which will be issued some weeks before the conference
- If you are a session chair, best look up your chairing duties in the conference system (Conftool) or the app.