Algebra has been explicit in many school curriculum programs from the early years but there are competing views on what content and approaches are appropriate for different levels of schooling. This study investigated 12-13-year-old Australian students' algebraic thinking in a hybrid environment of functional and equation-based approaches to…

Bilingual students have, at times, been thought to be at a disadvantage in learning mathematics because of an assumed interference between their two languages. Earlier research, confirmed again in this study, shows that this is a naive view to take. Although some bilingual students do have a harder time, others seem to be at an advantage. This…

Investigated were Australian and Papua New Guinean elementary school children's strategies and errors on arithmetic word problems. Reports that (1) the two samples showed similar strategies and similar errors and (2) the main variable determining difficulty was the semantic structure of the questions. (YP)

Use of general mathematical strategies by Australian students in grades 8-10 was studied, with students required to describe their reasoning and articulate reasons for the choice of particular strategies. Main effects were found for cognitive level, year level, and sex. A taxonomy is also presented. (MNS)

Investigated individual differences in (n=100) 10th-grade students' forms of visual thinking and related intuitions in the context of mathematical problem solving. Results suggest that success at problem solving was related to logical operational ability but not to vividness of visual imagery. (29 references) (Author/SYB)

Fifty children, ranging in age from 4 to 10, were individually administered a series of tasks involving different combinations of 2 items selected from a discrete set of items. Analyses of their performances revealed a series of six, increasingly sophisticated, solution strategies ranging from random number selection of items to a systematic…

This article is concerned with the learning of mathematics before the commencement of formal schooling. Describes the experiences of two students from four main sets of data: formal and informal measures of mathematics achievement, the learning environment in the home, and observations during teacher-led sessions concerned with mathematical…

The opinions of 98 Australian educational experts concerning mathematics skills necessary for future numeracy were solicited. The qualitative comments were incorporated into three scenarios reflecting alternative visions for the future: a careful scenario, a futuristic scenario, and a process scenario. (24 references) (MDH)