There has been a large amount of research about the impact of dynamic geometry software (DGS) on the learning of mathematics mainly related to different representations of mathematical concepts and functional dependences. This paper goes beyond these investigations by suggesting meaningful connection and integration of DGS with physical resources…

Purpose: Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) that can be extended and modified in various ways, is a practical and realistic type of problem and forms the basis for the visual and spatial solution of many optimization problems. In this study, 15, 25 and 35 nodes Travelling Salesman Problems were solved by secondary school, high school and…

Ethical theories are key principles that determine right decisions and actions in morally problematic situations. Using phenomenological method of data collection, explication, and interpretative, the adolescent interviewees in this study revealed the essential nature, structure, content, and meaning of their personal moral beliefs and other…

A more motivating way of introducing students to probability theory is through real-world problems. Since heuristics play an important role in our probabilistic judgement, knowing how to avoid incorrect probabilistic reasoning, which leads to several biases, could help students to develop more critical thinking skills. In this paper, we present a…

One of the major aims of STEM education is the development of mathematical thinking. The common misconception is that "doing mathematics" is the same as getting involved in "mathematical thinking". Rallying to such argument, many would agree that mathematics should be taught as a thinking activity. Thus, this study endeavours…

The periodic table is recognized as one of the most powerful tools in science. While it is included in virtually all high school and undergraduate general chemistry curricula, it remains a mystery to many chemistry students who find it impossible to decode. Students are often able to predict periodic trends concerning atomic radius, ionization…

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of heuristic strategy on students' mathematical abilities in high order thinking. This descriptive research uses a correlation design. The population of this study were all second-grade public and private high school students representing schools from eight districts in North Sumatra province,…

The purpose of this article is to identify the factors which affect students' creative thinking in problem solving. The research which was performed was quasi-experimental. It used one experimental group and two control groups from three second-grade high school classes. They received either traditional, active or heuristic problem-solving…

Solving simple arithmetic word problems is a major ability that children must acquire throughout the primary-grade mathematics curriculum. However, this skill is often challenging for them. For instance, "unknown referent problems" are more difficult to solve than "unknown compare problems." In unknown compare problems, the…

In this work we investigated the problem solving behaviors of 3 high school students as each solved four common non-routine problems with the goal to trace performance constancy across different subject areas and problem types. Additionally, we aimed to identify possible factors that influenced children's choices of heuristics in different problem…

Successful teacher preparation programs provide learning experiences that help teacher candidates make the shift from "student" to "teacher." In this paper we present research on the implementation of a process for providing candidates such experiences. Utilizing the Mathematics as Teacher Heuristic (MATH) process, prospective…

This dissertation describes the development of a state-of-the-art immersive media environment and its potential to motivate high school youth with autism to vocally express themselves. Due to the limited availability of media environments in public education settings, studies on the use of such systems in special education contexts are rare. A…

Formal mathematical methods remain, for most high school students, mysterious, artificial and not a part of their regular intuitive thinking. The authors develop some themes that could lead to a radically new approach. According to this thesis, the teaching of programming languages as a regular part of academic progress can contribute effectively…

Problem solving and student-centred learning have received a great deal of attention in mathematics curricula for schools and in some universities. Much of this emphasis developed from the pioneering work of George Polya in heuristics, problem solving, and mathematics education. In this study, the author reviews Polya's work, and some of its later…

This paper reports on methods of students' justifications of their solution to a problem in the area of combinatorics. From the analysis of the problem solving of 150 students in a variety of settings from high-school to graduate study, four major forms of reasoning evolved: (1) Justification by Cases, (2) Inductive Argument, (3) Elimination…