The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of goal specificity and scaffolding on the programming performance and self-regulation of elementary students engaged in learning game design. This study recruited 232 students for the experimental activities. Two levels of goal specificity were employed: specific and nonspecific.…

Little is known about how students learn the basic ideas of ring theory. While the literature addressing student learning of group theory is certainly relevant, the concepts of zero-divisor and, more generally, elements with no multiplicative inverse are among those for which group theory has no analogue. In order to better understand how students…

There is widespread agreement that further research is needed in order to identify afterschool program characteristics useful for understanding why some programs are more successful than others. The bulk of recommendations put forth by researchers, practitioners and policy makers focus on observable characteristics of the afterschool setting as a…

Collaborative learning has been shown to be beneficial for older students, but there has not been much research to show if these results transfer to elementary school students. In addition, collaborative and individual modes of instruction may be better for acquiring different types of knowledge. Collaborative Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS)…

In a society that is becoming more dynamic, complex, and diverse, the ability to solve ill-structured problems has become an increasingly critical skill. Emerging adults are at a critical life stage that is an ideal time to develop the skills needed to solve ill-structured problems (ISPs) as they are transitioning to adult roles and starting to…

This paper explores the group dynamics among three groups of students involved in collaborative learning in mathematical modelling activities. It reports how group dynamics were established and their influence on the students' mathematical problem-solving endeavours. Through video analyses, discourse structures were identified to suggest the…

Kayla was a 15 years old girl with Down syndrome attending a special education school in Indonesia. A modification of Wright et al.'s (2006) approach to assessment documented her number knowledge and arithmetical strategies. This paper discusses the assessment process and the results focusing on her ability to solve number problems. Results show…

This paper reports findings from a classroom based study with 5 year old children in their first term of school. A data modelling activity contextualised by a picture story book was used to present a prediction problem. A data table with numerical data values provided for three consecutive days of rubbish collection was provided, with a fourth day…

Tzur and Simon (2004) postulated two stages of concept development, participatory and anticipatory. The distinction between the two stages was exemplified by what they termed "the next-day phenomenon" in which learners who could solve a task one day in the context of the activity through which they made the abstraction, could not solve…

In this paper I focus on observations made regarding students mimicking of each other's gestures in face-to-face conversation while problem solving. The data supports the idea that the students may use such gestures to subconsciously signal acceptance. Through talk, gesture, prosody, and intonation, combined with context, the interlocutors may…

Geometry is one of the most important branches of mathematics education, because the aim of the geometry teaching is to provide students with the ability of critical thinking, problem solving and a better understanding of the other subjects in mathematics by making the students have a high level of geometric thinking skills (Sahin, O., 2008).…

This research study investigates the ability of students to tackle the solving of unique mathematical problems in the domain of numerical series, verbal and formal, and its influence on the motivation of junior high students with learning disabilities in the Arab sector. Two instruments were used to collect the data: mathematical series were…

The relevance of research problem due to high growth of information technologies roles in industrial activity and low level of teachers professionalism in topics related with information technology. Purpose of article is to show main components of a learning technology aimed at improving level teachers skills to solve didactic problems associated…

This study explores the civic thinking heuristics that civic leaders use when pre-planning action. Across eight think-aloud protocols, findings suggest that three heuristics are employed. "Frame alignment" refers to the process of harmonizing personal beliefs and interests with the particulars of a civic action issue to find personal…

This practical article presents activities that support previous research suggesting the integration of art with science is beneficial to the learning and cooperative processes of children. The project showcased here highlights the ability of elementary school children to collaborate with their peers for problem solving and critical thinking…