ERIC Number: ED501127
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2003-Jul
Pages: 8
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
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Goal Sketches in Fraction Learning
Sophian, Catherine; Madrid, Samara
International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Paper presented at the 27th International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education Conference Held Jointly with the 25th PME-NA Conference (Honolulu, HI, Jul 13-18, 2003), v4 p231-236
To examine how conceptual knowledge about fraction magnitudes changes as students' learning progresses, 5th and 7th-grade students were asked to solve fraction magnitude problems that entailed finding a fraction between two given fractions and then to evaluate solutions for similar problems that were modeled for them. When the given fractions share a common denominator or numerator, a simple strategy is to keep the common value and choose an intermediate value for the other component. 5th graders used this strategy on both common-numerator and common-denominator problems, and judged it "very smart" when it was modeled. 7th graders typically converted common numerator fractions to a common denominator and often judged the strategy of picking an intermediate denominator "not smart." (Contains 2 figures.) [For complete proceedings, see ED500860.]
Descriptors: Grade 7, Grade 5, Mathematics, Mathematical Models, Problem Solving, Computation, Learning Strategies, Mathematics Education, Learning Processes, Experiments, Cognitive Structures
International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. 35 Aandwind Street, Kirstenhof, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa. Tel: +27-21-715-3559; Fax: +27-88-021-715-3559; e-mail: info@igpme.org; Web site: http://igpme.org
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: Elementary Education; Grade 5; Grade 7
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Language: English
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Identifiers - Location: United States
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