Effects of classroom instruction on students' understanding of quadratic equations

Two hundred and thirty-one students in six Grade 9 classes in two government secondary schools located near Chiang Mai, Thailand, attempted to solve the same 18 quadratic equations before and after participating in 11 lessons on quadratic equations. Data from the students' written responses to...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Mathematics education research journal 2006-05, Vol.18 (1), p.47-77
Main Authors: Vaiyavutjamai, Pongchawee, Clements, M. A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Algebra
Classroom environment
Conventional teaching
Equations (Mathematics)
Foreign Countries
Grade 9
Instructional Effectiveness
Interviews
Knowledge level
Mathematical Concepts
Mathematics Achievement
Mathematics Instruction
Mathematics teaching
Problem Solving
Scoring Rubrics
Secondary education
Secondary School Mathematics
Secondary school students
Student Evaluation
Students
Teaching Methods
Thailand
Year 9
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Two hundred and thirty-one students in six Grade 9 classes in two government secondary schools located near Chiang Mai, Thailand, attempted to solve the same 18 quadratic equations before and after participating in 11 lessons on quadratic equations. Data from the students' written responses to the equations, together with data in the form of transcripts of 36 interviews with 18 interviewees (a high performer, a medium performer, and a low performer from each of the six classes), were analysed. Using a rubric for assessing students' understanding, the analysis revealed that at the post-teaching stage students improved their performance on quadratic equations and had a better understanding of associated concepts than they had at the pre-teaching stage. However, many were still confused about the concepts of a variable and of a 'solution' to a quadratic equation. After the lessons, most students had acquired neither an instrumental nor a relational understanding of the mathematics associated with solving elementary quadratic equations. [Author abstract]
ISSN:1033-2170
2211-050X
DOI:10.1007/BF03217429