Construct maps and related item type frameworks, which respectively describe and identify common patterns in student reasoning, provide teachers with tools to support instruction built upon students' intuitive thinking. We present a methodological approach--embedded within common assessment development processes--for developing such construct maps…

The theoretical reflection on the nature of school algebra and the development of algebraic thinking from the first educational levels is a relevant topic in mathematics education. In this paper, we first summarize and clarify the positions held on this topic by two theoretical frameworks: the Theory of Objectification and the Onto-semiotic…

This study aimed at investigating how preservice teachers' understandings of division and reasoning about ratios support and constrain their formation of proportional relationships in terms of quantities. Six preservice teachers from a middle-grade preparation program in the USA were selected purposefully based on their mathematics performance in…

The paper presents findings from a study that examined, through the lens of the Image Having layer of the Pirie-Kieren model, the qualitative characteristics of the images that different children formed when engaging with eight, novel partitive quotient tasks. The Image Having layer is the first point of abstraction within the Pirie-Kieren model.…

Quadratics provide a foundational context for making sense of many important algebraic concepts, such as variables and parameters, nonlinear rates of change, and views of function. Yet researchers have highlighted students' difficulties in connecting such concepts. This in-depth qualitative study with two pairs of Year 10 (15 or 16-year-old)…

Multiple representations can enhance students' understanding of mathematical concepts and complex information but can also pose well-documented challenges for students. Whereas instructional designs have been optimized to support students' "learning" with multiple representations, little is known about supportive "teaching"…

An important topic of study in secondary mathematics is non-linear functions, including quadratic equations. In this study, findings from 25 Year 11 students indicated that difficulties with critical prerequisite concepts such as algebraic conventions impeded students' success in understanding and working with quadratics. Analysis of student…

Due to the learning paradox, students cannot have real difficulty in understanding a mathematical concept that they have not yet understood. There is a gap between real difficulties, directly experienced by students, and illusionary ones, only observed by researchers. This paper aims to offer a critical reflection on our understanding of the term…

A theoretical model describing Grade 7 students' rational number sense was formulated and validated empirically (n = 360), hypothesizing that rational number sense is a general construct consisting of three factors: basic rational number sense, arithmetic sense, and flexibility with rational numbers. Data analysis suggested that rational-number…

The purpose of the current study was to explore pre-service middle school mathematics teachers' personal concept definitions of a trapezoid, parallelogram, rectangle, rhombus, square, and kite. The data were collected by a self-report instrument through which the pre-service teachers provided their answers in written form. The participants'…

This study examines the conceptual understanding of numbers and operations among 372 fifth-grade students, based on their responses to an online three-tier test designed to assess their number sense, declarative knowledge, explanatory knowledge, and confidence. The results showed that most students had low performance and low number sense, with…

In this paper, we list some of the areas of the Australian curriculum that have links with the concept of infinity. We do this in order to promote a discussion about what aspects of infinity should become familiar to primary teachers. From our viewpoint, infinity has connections with Algebra, Art, Geometry and Measurement, Probability, Science and…

Learning progressions have become increasingly prevalent in mathematics education as they offer a fine-grain map of possible learning pathways a child may take within a particular domain. However, there is an opportunity to build upon this research in ways that consider learning from multiple perspectives. Many current forms of learning…

In this study, we investigate a program designed for young adults with intellectual disability to learn how to calculate the value of a collection of coins and notes with procedural fluency. In the first half of the paper, we establish the importance of financial literacy for people with intellectual disability and the need to address mathematical…

The aim of this research was to explore the mathematical connections that pre-university students make when they sketch the graph of a derivative function and an antiderivative function. Also, we tried to explain the origin of the mathematical connections identified. We assume mathematical connections as a cognitive process through which a person…