ERIC Number: ED600002
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
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Conceptual and Brain Processing of Unit Fraction Comparisons: A Cogneuro-Mathed Study
Tzur, Ron; Depue, Brendan E.
North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Paper presented at the Joint Meeting of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME) (38th) and the North American Chapter of the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME-NA) (36th, Vancouver, Canada, Jul 15-20, 2014)
This mixed-method, qualitative/quantitative study examined (a) how a constructivist-based intervention (CBI) effected adults' learning of unit fractions and performance on whole-number (WN) or unit fraction (FR) comparisons and (b) brain circuitry implicated (fMRI) when processing these comparisons. The CBI used unit-iteration based activities to foster a shift in participants' understanding of FR, from the prevalent, limiting "one-out-of-so-many-equal-parts" idea to a multiplicative relation conception and thus inverse magnitude relation among FR (1/n>1/m though m>n). Pre- and two post-intervention tests indicated CBI impact on decreased reaction time in comparing not just FR but also WN and differentiated brain regions implicated for each. Implications for theory testing and CBI impact on WN-FR links are discussed. [For the complete proceedings, see ED597799.]
Descriptors: Fractions, Adult Learning, Constructivism (Learning), Mathematics Instruction, Numbers, Brain, Reaction Time, Adult Students, Instructional Effectiveness, Neurological Organization
North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. e-mail: pmena.steeringcommittee@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.pmena.org/
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research
Education Level: Adult Education
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Language: English
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