Most students struggle when faced with complex and open-ended tasks because the strategies taught in schools and universities simply require finding and applying the correct formulae or strategy to answer well-structured, algorithmic problems. For students to develop their ability to solve ill-structured problems, they must first believe that…

In this article, modified cognitive strategy instruction in writing (CSIW), a cognitive strategy instructional model is described. Modified CSIW was designed based on two effective instructional models: cognitive strategy instruction in writing (CSIW) and self-regulated strategy development (SRSD). Modified CSIW provides tailored instruction to…

To deeply understand proportional reasoning, students must be able to differentiate proportional situations from nonproportional situations. Unfortunately, the emphasis on the use of proportional strategies in middle-grades mathematics has led students to develop a disposition to associate certain characteristics of problem formulation with the…

We investigated the influence of self-efficacy beliefs and working memory capacity on mathematical problem-solving performance, response time, and efficiency (i.e., the ratio of problems solved correctly to time). Students completed a letter-recoding task (Experiment 1) or an operation span task (Experiment 2), rated their self-efficacy for…

Mathematics education has emerged to be of prime importance in the United States, as American students' performance has shown to be consistently and significantly lower than many other nations in the world (Rampey, Dion, & Donahue, 2009; National Center for Education Statistics, n.d.; OECD Programme for International Student Assessment, n.d.).…

Innovations in learning with conscious thinking result in conceptual and effective learning. New strategies and techniques of learning aim at bringing about change in behavior that might help in solving problems of the individual at local and global level. This paper inquires into benefits of Reflective Practice in Open and Distance Learning in…

This research project investigates students' development of problem solving schemata while using strategies that facilitate the process of using solved examples to assist with a new problem (case reuse). Focus group learning interviews were used to explore students' perceptions and understanding of several problem solving strategies. Individual…

Teaching math problem solving has been a challenge for many educators, especially in Title I schools. Textbooks provided by the district under study were the primary source of math instructional material. Moreover, the instruction of computation was the method used for preparing students for success with later problem solving lessons. The lack of…

Children with HFA/AS are outperformed by their neuro-typical peers on mathematical problem solving skills even though they have average-to-above-average intelligence (Dickerson Mayes & Calhoun, 2003b); have average-to-above-average computation skills (Chiang & Lin, 2007); and, are educated in the general education setting (Twenty Eighth…

The authors examined the effectiveness of strategy instruction taught by general educators in mixed-ability classrooms. Specifically, the authors compared the mathematical word problem-solving performance and computational skills of students who received schema-based instruction (SBI) with students who received general strategy instruction (GSI).…

fMRI was used to examine the differential effect of two problem-solving strategies. Participants were trained to use both a pictorial/spatial and a symbolic/algebraic strategy to solve word problems. While these two strategies activated similar cortical regions, a number of differences were noted in the level of activation. These differences…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a teaching/learning strategy through which students learn course content by solving real-world problems associated with the course material. Although the benefits of PBL have been amply demonstrated in the medical field and other selected subject areas, few studies have examined PBL's potential contributions in…

Individual differences in strategy use (choice and accuracy) were analyzed. A sample of 362 Grade 6 students solved complex division problems under 2 different conditions. In the choice condition students were allowed to use either a mental or a written strategy. In the subsequent no-choice condition, they were required to use a written strategy.…

We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore the patterns of brain activation associated with different levels of performance in exact and approximate calculation tasks in well-defined cohorts of children with mathematical calculation difficulties (MD) and typically developing controls. Both groups of children activated the same…

Today's students will require knowledge and skills that differ from those typically provided by schools. Comparisons of learning and assessments in informal, everyday settings (e.g., homes, businesses) with those that occur in typical school settings provide ample evidence that new assessment strategies are needed. Those comparisons reveal many…