The purpose of the study was to identify effective pedagogical strategies to increase 4th grade students' mathematics problem-solving skills. Numerous researchers have looked at mathematics problem solving; however, there is a scarcity of data relating to 4th grade mathematics problem solving proficiency. Fourth grade students at the…

The research described in this report is a randomized controlled trial in which seventh- and eighth-grade students were randomly assigned to complete a set of 25 math questions delivered with either standard language or language that had undergone "linguistic modification" by the research team. The purpose of the study was to assess the…

This article illustrates how activities or tasks can be designed that are based on the Necessity Principle. Two sections illustrate how tasks can be formulated to provoke the need to use two mathematical ideas--prime factorization and least common multiple. In each section, the author presents two examples to illustrate how some mathematical tasks…

A secretary has "n" letters and "n" addressed envelopes. Instead of matching each letter with the corresponding envelope, she inserts the letters in a random manner. What are the chances that every letter will be in the wrong envelope? In this article, the author presents a solution to this problem and discusses possible ways of placing the…

These problems and activities have been used to demonstrate the uses of multiple representations as well as provide opportunities for students to practice using multiple representations in solving problems. (Contains 3 figures and 2 tables.)

Quantitative literacy is an important proficiency that pertains to "word problems" from science, history, and other fields. Unfortunately, teaching how to solve such problems often is relegated to math courses alone. This article examines how quantitative literacy also involves concepts and skills from English composition and the substantive…

Although mathematics is visual language of symbols and numbers it is also expressed and explained through written and spoken words. For students to excel in mathematics, they must recognize, comprehend and apply the requisite vocabulary. Thus, vocabulary instruction is as critical in content areas as it is in language arts. It is especially…

Transfer of strategies between problems sharing the same formal structure is facilitated by a semantic recoding that makes evident the structural similarities between the problems. Two experiments were carried out among 4th and 5th grade pupils, with an experimental group trained to compare strategies in order to reinterpret an arithmetic word…

Educational systems throughout the world serve students from diverse populations. Often students from minority populations (i.e. racial, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic) face unique challenges when learning in contexts based on the cultural traditions and learning theories of the majority population. These challenges often leave minority…

The use of problem-solving strategies by 59 deaf and hard of hearing children, grades K-3, was investigated. The children were asked to solve 9 arithmetic story problems presented to them in American Sign Language. The researchers found that while the children used the same general types of strategies that are used by hearing children (i.e.,…

This article aims to present the findings of a research which investigated the effect of a difference in word formulation and mathematical characteristics of story problems on their successful solution by preservice mathematics teachers (students) and practising mathematics teachers. The findings show that in the case of a problem with a…

A sample of 127 high school Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus students from two schools was utilized to study the effects of an engineering design-based problem solving strategy on student performance with AP style Related Rate questions and changes in conceptions, beliefs, and influences. The research design followed a treatment-control multiple…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the contributions of domain-general cognitive resources and different forms of arithmetic development to individual differences in pre-algebraic knowledge. Children (n = 279, mean age = 7.59 years) were assessed on 7 domain-general cognitive resources as well as arithmetic calculations and word problems…

Math content for English Language Learners (ELLs) is unforgiving in terms of the constant need to build specific math and reading knowledge. As a result, ELLs may not only need math support but also reading comprehension support. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a word problem solving strategy called Estratégica…

This dissertation analyzes differences found in Spanish-speaking middle school and high school students in algebra-based problem solving. It identifies the accuracy differences between word problems presented in English, Spanish and numerically based problems. The study also explores accuracy differences between each subgroup of Spanish-speaking…