As today's classrooms become more and more diverse, there is a growing need to explore the intersection between English Learners (ELs) and students with learning disabilities (LD) in the content-specific instruction of mathematics problem solving. The aim of this study was to determine which types of instructional scaffolds may be used by math…

Learning abstract concepts through concrete examples may promote learning at the cost of inhibiting transfer. The present study investigated one approach to solving this problem: systematically varying superficial features of the examples. Participants learned to solve problems involving a mathematical concept by studying either superficially…

The How Far Do You Think You Can Jump? activity (see EJ1174770) was completed in three different contexts: an after-school mathematics enrichment program at Woodland and Country Schools in Weston, Massachusetts; a small-group pull-out of second graders at Wren Elementary in Piedmont, South Carolina; and a family math night in Lafayette, Indiana.…

Problem solving is a necessary component of developing a strong mathematics curriculum that will help all students achieve their life goals, regardless of their specific academic plans. What day-to-day instructional decisions do teachers need to make if they believe that problem solving is a vehicle for learning mathematical content? In this…

This paper describes how the author's students (in-service and pre-service secondary mathematics teachers) enrolled in college geometry courses use the Geometers' Sketchpad (GSP) to gain insight to formulate, confirm, test, and refine conjectures to solve the classical airport problem for triangles. The students are then provided with strategic…

As part of an on-going project designed to impact teacher quality at the pre-service, induction, and professional development levels, this paper summarizes the parametric results of a series of four different workshops conducted in the summer of 2007. In an effort to glean a better understanding of their knowledge, attitudinal, perceptual, and…

This collection of activities demonstrates how the study of elementary mathematics can be extended beyond the school and involve teachers and students in investigative, problem-based experiences. The activities include topics in geometry, concept of number, algebra, measurement, graphing, statistics, and probability, and are organized into five…

In December of 1986 and January of 1987, questionnaires on teaching practices in science and mathematics were sent to elementary school principals in Indiana. The first questionnaire, completed by 301 administrators, concerned manipulative use of materials in science and mathematics. The second questionnaire, completed by 317 administrators,…

In 1990, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) included a Trial State Assessment (TSA); for the first time in the NAEP's history, voluntary state-by-state assessments (37 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands) were made. The sample was designed to represent the 8th grade public school population in a state…