This report identifies 13 instructional strategies for teaching adult numeracy skills that address issues of assessment, development of mathematical skills, and development of problem-solving skills. The rationale and suggestions regarding the following 13 instructional principles are described: address and evaluate attitudes and beliefs about…

For decades, every chemical engineer has been asked to have a background in separations. The required separations course can, however, be uninspiring and superficial because understanding many separation processes involves conventional graphical methods and commercial process simulators. We utilize simple, user-­friendly mathematical software,…

This test for third grade students in Alberta, Canada, consists of two sections. Section I is divided into two parts: Part A has 25 questions covering numeration, geometry, and graphing, and part B has 25 questions covering operations and properties, measurement, and problem-solving strategies. Section II consists of four basic-fact tests in…

These materials are intended to provide meaningful mathematical experiences for pre-algebra students. These experiences emphasize the development of computational skills, mathematical concepts, and problem-solving techniques. This bulletin may be used as the basis for the first term of a one-year course. The complete course is divided into 12…

To isolate the process deficits underlying a specific learning disability in mathematics achievement, 77 academically normal and 46 learning disabled (LD) students in second, fourth or sixth grade were presented 140 simple addition problems using a true-false reaction time verification paradigm. (The problems were on a video screen controlled by…

Research on the use of calculators in mathematics classes is reviewed. It is noted that calculators were initially too high-priced and of too low an availability to be viewed in terms of widespread use in classrooms. Technological and manufacturing advances have since made wide use possible. Proponents of calculator use see this technology as a…

Abstracts of 12 mathematics education research reports and critical comments (by the abstractors) about the reports are provided in this issue of Investigations in Mathematics Education. The reports are: "More Precisely Defining and Measuring the Order-Irrelevance Principle" (Arthur Baroody); "Children's Relative Number Judgments:…

This study addressed: (1) what difference, if any, would calculators make on a typical mathematics assessment instrument; (2) what might occur if students were allowed to use, but were not furnished with, calculators for testing; and (3) what implications do answers to these questions have for future statewide assessment. Eighth-grade students…

This paper, presented at the 1979 meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Francisco, discusses the effects of calculator availability on the elementary school mathematics curriculum. The rationale for a shift from a computationally based curriculum to a conceptually oriented curriculum utilizing the calculator as an…

Suggests that the mathematics curriculum for young children can grow from children's literature. Examples given encourage children to use a variety of thinking skills including classifying, forming hypotheses, selecting strategies, and creating problems. (PK)

Presents three traditional problems from discrete mathematics with alternative solutions and discussion of those solutions. (PK)

Contains activities for grades 1 through 8 to develop skills in estimation. Designed to help students deal with numbers sensibly and acquire problem solving competency, the estimation activities involve measurement, telling time, computation, and problem solving. (PK)

Math teaching involves more development of computational skills than problem solving and concept analysis. Presented are four areas to consider in attacking the problem. (MD)

Described are several spreadsheet templates which use the functions of iteration and logical look-up which allow students to calculate and graph quantum mechanical functions and to simulate rotational and vibrational energy level and spectra. The templates are listed in the appendix. (KR)

Described is how spreadsheet and problem solver microcomputer programs may assist students in performing mathematical calculations. Discussed is the application of the equation solver "MathCAD" to various areas in the undergraduate curriculum. (KR)