Presents a study designed to explore whether a student's use of the graphing calculator during instruction will affect their concept of function, how students' participation in a conceptual change assignment affects their concept of function, and how the graphing calculator and the conceptual change assignment interact with one another to…

Assessed was the level of thinking of 140 students who had been placed in developmental algebra as entering college freshmen. Scores on the Group Assessment of Logical Thinking, Scholastic Aptitude Tests, college placement tests; high school grade point average, and developmental algebra final grade were analyzed. Group characteristics are…

Identified is research related to concept formation; the chronology of identity and equivalence conservations; the relationship of mental age to performance on number concept tasks; perceptual, attentional, linguistic, and social factors; and the potential use of cognitive developmental criteria as measures of ability for both normal and retarded…

Discussed are some situations students face that result in cognitive conflict, possible sources of these conflicts, and strategies which students use to resolve, remove, or circumvent them. A global account for observed systematic errors is offered based on a general problem-solving rule called the "Matching Rule." (KR)

Explored were the relationships among students' mathematics language facility, procedural mathematics knowledge, and understanding and application of mathematics concepts. Findings indicate that students needed both procedural knowledge and language facility in mathematics for an acceptable level of conceptual achievement. (CW)