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Full-Text Articles in Education

Effectiveness Of Professional Learning: Enhancing The Teaching Of Fractions In Primary Schools, Derek Hurrell May 2016

Effectiveness Of Professional Learning: Enhancing The Teaching Of Fractions In Primary Schools, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

No abstract provided.


Tasks And Resources For Developing Children's Multiplicative Thinking, Derek Hurrell, Chris Hurst May 2016

Tasks And Resources For Developing Children's Multiplicative Thinking, Derek Hurrell, Chris Hurst

Derek Hurrell

The development of multiplicative thinking determines largely the extent of the mathematics that a person learns beyond middle primary school. Our current research project has so far revealed that many primary children have a procedural view of aspects of multiplicative thinking that we believe inhibits their progress. This workshop focuses on some of the teaching resources and tasks that have been developed from our research. The purpose of these tasks is to promote the development of conceptual understanding of 'the multiplicative situation' and the many connections within it and with other big ideas such as proportional reasoning and algebraic thinking.


An Explanation For The Use Of Arrays To Promote The Understanding Of Mental Strategies For Multiplication, Lorraine Day, Derek Hurrell May 2016

An Explanation For The Use Of Arrays To Promote The Understanding Of Mental Strategies For Multiplication, Lorraine Day, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

This article provides a convincing argument for using arrays to promote students’ understandings of mental computation strategies for multiplication. Also a range of different examples that illustrate the benefits of arrays in the primary classroom are provided.


Developing Proportional Reasoning, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day May 2016

Developing Proportional Reasoning, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day

Derek Hurrell

Proportional reasoning is one of the big mathematical ideas students will encounter. It applies to a wide range of contexts across all of the content strands and is considered a critical concept for success in secondary mathematics. It requires an ability to think multiplicatively and relationally, and is often problematic for students.


The Importance Of Fractions In Being A Successful Mathematics Student, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day May 2016

The Importance Of Fractions In Being A Successful Mathematics Student, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day

Derek Hurrell

Research and experience tells us that fractions are not easy to teach and learn and that a solid conceptual understanding of fractions has far reaching ramifications in the secondary mathematics classroom. A failure to acknowledge and remediate 'inherited' challenges to this understanding may result in the further success of students being severely impeded.


The Reasoning Proficiency, Lorraine Day, Derek Hurrell May 2016

The Reasoning Proficiency, Lorraine Day, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

If students are to reason mathematically, they need to be engaged in mathematically rich, investigative tasks that allow them to explain their thinking, justify the strategies they use and the conclusions they reach, and adapt the known to the unknown. 1he importance of contextualised Learning should be highlighted so students may be encouraged to transfer their learning from one context to another, explain their choices within a context, and compare and contrast related ideas. 1he reasoning proficiency naturally interrelates with the understanding, problem solving and fluency proficiencies.v


Measurement: Five Considerations To Add Even More Impact To Your Program, Derek Hurrell May 2016

Measurement: Five Considerations To Add Even More Impact To Your Program, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

The potential of using Measurement as a way of “tuning students into mathematics” is demonstrated. Five ideas that can form the basis of focusing on measurement to access other strands of the mathematics curriculum are examined.


Learning Environments That Support The Development Of Multiplicative Thinking, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day May 2016

Learning Environments That Support The Development Of Multiplicative Thinking, Derek Hurrell, Lorraine Day

Derek Hurrell

Given the right learning environment primary aged children can and do develop the capacity to think multiplicatively. Through vignettes taken from interviews with a Year 5 class during a research project, the optimal conditions for the conceptual development underpinning multiplicative thinking is examined.


Developing The Big Ideas Of Number, Chris Hurst, Derek Hurrell May 2016

Developing The Big Ideas Of Number, Chris Hurst, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

The mathematical content knowledge (MCK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of primary and elementary teachers at all levels of experience is under scrutiny. This article suggests that content knowledge and the way in which it is linked to effective pedagogies would be greatly enhanced by viewing mathematical content from the perspective of the ‘big ideas’ of mathematics, especially of number. This would enable teachers to make use of the many connections and links within and between such ‘big ideas’ and to make them explicit to children. Many teachers view the content they have to teach in terms of what curriculum …


Investigating Children's Multiplicative Thinking, Chris Hurst, Derek Hurrell May 2016

Investigating Children's Multiplicative Thinking, Chris Hurst, Derek Hurrell

Derek Hurrell

Multiplicative thinking is a ‘big idea’ of mathematics that underpins much of the mathematics learned beyond the early primary school years. The conference presentation reports on a recent study that utilised an interview tool to gather data about children’s multiplicative thinking. Using a workshop format, we present some of the interview tool and some of the findings, as well as demonstrate how the tool can be used for planning, teaching and assessment. The session also emphasises the importance of developing deep conceptual understanding as opposed to the teaching of procedures. This paper considers how evidence from the interview can be …