Describes two problem-solving videodisc adventure stories related to geometry and reports reactions of (n=25) teachers and their students who used the adventures. Results found teachers and students had increased knowledge of ways to apply geometry. (12 references) (MKR)

Describes a staff development project, created by and for teachers, that consolidates awareness, realistic planning, implementation, sharing, and frequent assessment activities to answer the calls for educational reform to both improve and change classroom instruction. Includes staff development questionnaire. (MKR)

Describes six informal diagnostic strategies (paired learning, red dot, chalkboard analysis, small-group pretesting and reteaching, answer key, and calculator computation checks) designed to help middle school students gain independence through cooperative learning activities. Corrective feedback is provided through peer discussion, limited…

Discusses briefly current trends and innovations in curriculum, instruction, and assessment for middle school mathematics. (SR)

Investigates the effects of an instructional intervention derived from the Garofalo and Lester cognitive-metacognitive framework on the problem-solving performance of year six students with different ability levels. Concludes that there was significant improvement in problem-solving performance for the experimental class compared to the control…

Describes a mathematical investigation for fifth-grade students that incorporates a social studies unit on the United States. Provides a method of using mathematics by applying it to other content areas. (ASK)

Examines the effects of a teaching strategy in which fifth-grade students evaluated the strengths or weaknesses of solution methods to pattern finding problems, including an experimental and control group each consisting of 34 elementary students, in Japan. The experimental group showed a significantly better performance on the retention test…

Describes a typical fifth-grade mathematics lesson as taught in a Japanese elementary school, followed by a reflective commentary focused on problem solving, using manipulative aids, and multiple solutions. (ASK)

Presents the use of concept mapping as an assessment tool augmented by an additional activity. Discusses how this elaboration of a concept map contains potential information on what students are coming to understand and helps the teacher to decide the direction of future instruction. Presents examples of students' concept maps. (ASK)

This book presents mathematics activities to help children talk and write mathematically. Children are encouraged to talk about and share their ideas, to use everyday language to describe mathematical situations, and to restate problems in their own words. There are two sections in this book. Part 1 discusses the following issues and implications…

Contemporary learning theory supports the use of writing as a cognitive tool to enhance retention and assist students to understand abstract mathematical concepts. Using writing activities in the intermediate grade and secondary classroom enhances the learning of mathematics and is a way of making mathematics more reachable to those students who…

This study sought to determine if success and continuance in an accelerated high school mathematics program could be predicted, and which identifying tools would best accomplish this purpose. The sample consisted of 72 tenth- and eleventh-grade students in one high school who were either identified for acceleration or had accelerated on their own.…

A prime concern of problem-solving instruction is to maximize positive transfer of learning from a previously solved problem to a new problem. One aspect of the relationship between transfer of learning and problem-solving instruction is the order of problem presentation. In this study, order of problem presentation is controlled, while certain…

The relationship between expert teachers' classroom behavior and their subject matter knowledge is an area of research that has not been examined extensively. To begin that study, one topic, fraction knowledge, was explored in depth as it occurred in natural teaching settings. Fractions are one of the more difficult topics in elementary…

This study investigated the effects of using two microcomputer games to help children in grades 4 to 6 develop and apply concepts of probability. To achieve the object of the games, a player should choose moves ("captures") so that the probability of recapture by an opponent is minimized. Questions addressed included whether students…