The transition between arithmetic and algebraic thinking is challenging for students. One notable difficulty for students is understanding algebraic symbols--pronumerals. Researchers are exploring pedagogical approaches in seeking to address this issue. The current paper is contributing to this body of literature by illustrating how an online card…

This paper reports on an investigation of the student interaction and group development of a four-student group during collaborative mathematics problem solving. Video and written transcript of the group interaction were analysed. The group problem solving has been described by the flow of negotiative events in terms of topics discussed within the…

This paper reports a study that explored 11 to 12-year-olds' conceptions of the terms 'volume', 'capacity' and 'interior volume'. Semi-structured interviews, supported by the use of measurement resources, were used to gain insight into their thinking. Video-recordings of the interviews allowed analysis of dialogue, actions with the materials and…

The aim of this research was to explore 11 to 12-year-old children's understanding of the mass of objects made from different materials, and the measurement of this attribute. In depth task-based interviews were conducted with six children attending six different schools; five were in Year 6 and one in Year 7. The children were found to hold…

Nationally and internationally, teachers are being held increasingly accountable for student achievement, particularly in light of high stakes literacy and numeracy tests. Policies have been implemented that are designed to improve educational outcomes through raising student literacy levels across all school years in all subject areas. This has…

Considered by many as a source of valuable data and a potential to improve mathematics education, a significant amount of studies have been conducted on The National Assessment Program -- Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) test results. This study is a systematic literature review of 86 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2008 and 2017 to…

The purpose of this study was to explore the factorial structure of motivation and perception items from a student survey utilised as part of the Reframing Mathematical Futures II (RMFII) Project. Data was collected in 2017 from 442 students in Years 7 to 10 from various different States across Australia. An exploratory factor analysis identified…

In this study, we investigated students' thinking about the use of letters in algebra. Responses from over 1,400 Australian secondary school students to a set of three algebra items were analysed to determine the prevalence of the "letter as object" misconception. We estimate that 50% to 80% of Year 7 students bring this misconception to…

Studies, such as Programme for International Student Assessment 2012, indicate that there are gender based differences in measures of mathematics anxiety, self-concept and self-efficacy among students. In this study we explore self-efficacy, self-concept and mathematics anxiety in a sample of Year 7 and 8 South Australian students to examine if…

The Australian Curriculum: Mathematics calls for the concurrent development of mathematical skills and mathematical reasoning. What are the big ideas of mathematical reasoning and is it possible to map their learning trajectories? Using rich assessment tasks designed for middle-years students of mathematics, this symposium reports on the…

In this study we investigated how 200 students in seventh grade (mean age = 12.38 years) solved simple addition problems and if the way they performed simple addition was related to their achievement in mathematics. Four performance groups were identified: proficient, almost proficient, inaccurate min counting and accurate min counting. More than…

This paper attempted to make explicit some of the underlying characteristics of spatial visualisation using the concept of area of composite shapes. By engaging students with metric-free tasks, we identify the type of perceptual and visual/spatial manoeuvres that they deploy in such situations. Interview data collected from three students in Grade…

This paper explores the construction of classroom contexts facilitative of student engagement in Mathematics. Employing a form of discourse analysis framed within a participation approach to learning, the paper provides insights into the construction of such contexts. The affordances and constraints of constructing such a context are discussed in…

Exploring why more boys than girls continue to study higher levels of mathematics in senior school when there appear to be no gender differences in achievement in earlier years is worthy of investigation. There are potentially many reasons why this occurs including career aspirations, interest, and attitudes. One factor explored in this study was…

Numeracy is a fundamental component of the Australian National Curriculum as a General Capability identified in each F-10 subject. In this paper, we consider the principles of design necessary for the development of numeracy tasks specific to subjects other than mathematics--in this case, the subject of English. We explore the nature of potential…