Objective: Explicit instructions to students to use the index finger to trace out specified elements of mathematics worked examples have been shown to improve mathematics learning outcomes; however, there is limited research on whether the magnitude of tracing actions impacts these outcomes. Method: Using an experimental design, 34 adults were…

Researchers who have carried out studies pertaining to mental computation and everyday mathematics point out that adults and children reason intuitively based upon experiences within specific contexts; they use invented strategies of their own to solve real-life problems. We draw upon research areas of mental computation and everyday mathematics…

Marlene Chesney describes a piece of research where the participants were asked to complete a calculation, 16 + 8, and then asked to describe how they solved it. The diversity of invented strategies will be of interest to teachers along with the recommendations that are made. So "how do 'you' solve 16 + 8?"

To date, few studies have investigated the evolution of problem solving and general numeracy abilities during adulthood: skills that have obvious social importance. In this research, evolutions in adults' mental arithmetic skills were investigated using data from the IVQ 2004 French national survey, which tested 9,185 adults aged between 18 and…

Two simple quantitative models were derived from a series of experiments which explored the role of information storage in working memory when performing mental arithmetic. The decay model is a tractable analysis of a complex task which assumes a decay process in working storage. Similar analyses are recommended for problem solving activities…