Argues that students need to be able to solve daily problems, set goals, and identify strategies for themselves. Suggests two methods for teaching these skills while reinforcing and incorporating the crucial processes of writing and language skills into learning mathematics: A Problem of the Week and Thinking Journals. (RAE)

Three worksheets are provided to help secondary students explore relationships among the areas of a variety of similar figures constructed on the sides of right triangles. The activity is extended to include the relationship among the lengths of the sides of the right triangle. Included are several student worksheets. (DC)

Discusses the top eight educational software titles of the year plus 35 additional programs. Topics include math/problem solving, language arts, science, social studies, classroom management/teacher tools, creative arts, and new versions of older software. (MVL)

The influence of cultural practices on the cognitive development of largely unschooled children was investigated among 23 candy sellers and matched non-vendors between 10- and 12-years-old who resided in northeast Brazil. Findings are interpreted as supporting a model of cognitive development in which children construct novel understandings while…

Assignment projects for high-achieving ninth graders were developed, and a comparative evaluation study indicated that they were effective. It bacame clear that teachers needed more practical support, so a diagnostic study was undertaken, leading to the establishment of a link between a categorization of student difficulties and a hierarchy of…

This study of 24 third-grade students' comprehension of mathematical operations found that students who received instruction that provided explicit instruction focusing on conceptual understanding, problem-solving skills, and developing connections of mathematical concepts performed better than students receiving implicit instruction. (Author/JDD)

Discusses the establishment and implications of programs and workshops developed in response to Florida's State Comprehension Plan for Mathematics, Science, and Computer Education. Emphases are on efforts geared toward expanding support for precollege science teaching. (ZWH)

An extension of the multidimensional Rasch model for learning and change is presented that permits theories of processes and knowledge structures to be incorporated into the item response model. The extension resolves basic problems in measuring change and permits adaptive testing. The method is illustrated in a study of mathematical problem…

It is argued that the trend toward emphasizing conceptual knowledge over skills in mathematics instruction may require a reconsideration of the deficit model that has dominated intervention practice. General and specific suggestions are made toward establishing a new classroom environment for conceptual mathematics learning for all students.…

Describes an experimental test conducted with high school students to determine the effect of posting explicit goal structures on problem-solving performance in an intelligent tutoring system for calculus. Related rates word problems are discussed, and student performance in terms of speed and accuracy is analyzed. (Contains 29 references.) (LRW)

Investigates the mathematical behavior of 30 college students in a problem situation that requires them to find the inverse of a given compound element in an environment of LOGO turtle graphics. Results from interviews indicate that, in searching for the inverse, students tend to invert the elements but not the order. (MDH)

Provides new evidence for mathematical problem-solving abilities of preschool children. These problem-solving behaviors occurred in a study of sharing of discrete items by dealing, in which we examined the abilities of three categories of counters to solve a discrete redistribution problem. Identifies problem-solving strategies used in the context…

This article describes the factors to which the classroom teacher needs to attend to enhance the mathematical problem-solving abilities of students. Emphasis is placed upon the means necessary to develop the attribute of being a problem solver, rather than focusing on the goal of becoming a problem solver. (JJK)

This paper argues that the ability to conduct structured interviews with students should be part of every mathematics teacher's repertoire of student assessment strategies. The paper discusses and illustrates interview strategies and skills and reviews assumptions about mathematical problem solving. (JDD)

Schematic knowledge was assessed by asking 195 ninth and tenth graders to classify area-of-rectangle problems in terms of whether the text provided insufficient, sufficient, or irrelevant information for solution. The hierarchical ordering of templates for the area of a rectangle is demonstrated, and implications for mathematics instruction are…