U.S. mathematics education has been criticized for being too broad. This article examines ways middle school students use simple problems and situations to foster a deeper understanding of underlying concepts. Presents a sample area and perimeter problem, describes extending the problem using tiles to determine minimum perimeter, and discusses…

One Swedish university designed a program based on problem solving to make student teachers more reflective about mathematics teaching and learning. Student teachers work cooperatively in small groups, with teacher educators facilitating. Preliminary evaluation suggests the program helps student teachers develop insight into the complexity of…

Introduces a Storm Trackers unit that uses actual hurricane data to track hurricane movements. Uses an inquiry-based teaching approach in a cooperative learning environment. (YDS)

Guidelines for implementing a problem-solving approach to teaching mathematics concepts and skills to students with mild disabilities include: establish connections to daily life; use visual presentations; use manipulatives; use peer-mediated instruction; provide models, cues, and prompts; teach self-management techniques and learning strategies;…

The Challenger Learning Center of Kentucky is 1 of 34 Challenger Center sites for space science education nationally and the only one in a rural area. Since the center's opening in March 1999, some 5,500 sixth-graders have "flown" space missions that involved using teamwork and math and science skills to solve problems and complete the…

A model of expert tutors' knowledge of applied statistics was used to create a web-based computer coach that emulates human tutoring. Cognitive assessments are obtained from records of students' actions as, with the computer tutor's help, they learn to apply components of procedural knowledge required to solve problems. Learning is evaluated by…

Authors were conducting research in different disciplines and carrying it out by apparently different methods. This combined paper is a reaction to their mutual discovery that the theories used by each to examine the data have interesting similarities. The two projects studied encouraged creative strategies and evaluative reflection in the…

Anchored instruction is designed to present problems in a meaningful context to allow for investigations into real life environments. The Jasper Project was created to allow students to investigate mathematical dilemmas using anchored instruction techniques. This study uses case study methods to examine the perceptions that preservice teachers…

InterMath participants spend time in workshops exploring technology-rich mathematical investigations and completing write-ups. These write-ups include a written explanation of their problem solving process, screen captures of files that they generated while completing the investigation and links to these files. This paper examines the use of…

This paper articulates a perspective on learning to discuss ways in which students develop personal sense and negotiate meaning in a middle school algebra context. Building on a sociocultural perspective that incorporates mental objects, learning is described as a mutually dependent process involving personal sense making and the public…

A socio-constructivist account of learning and emotions stresses the situatedness of every learning activity and points to the close interactions between cognitive, conative and affective factors in students' learning and problem solving. Emotions are perceived as being constituted by the dynamic interplay of cognitive, physiological, and…

The goals of this four-phased study were to enhance the quality of educational experience for under-represented (rural, low income, and female) secondary students (N=628), and to increase their participation in mathematics and science courses beginning at the middle school level. Teachers (N=28) were asked to expand their pedagogical content…

This 3-week summer project was designed to (1) identify and improve the teaching capabilities of under-prepared junior high school mathematics and science teachers and (2) acquaint college and junior high school teachers with current techniques in mathematics and science at the two different levels (college and junior high) and continue…

This paper describes a study in which both collaborative action research and collaborative mathematics classroom instruction took place. The mathematics instruction consisted of the implementation of a problem-solving curriculum into seventh-grade mathematics classrooms. One problem-solving strategy per week for 10 weeks was introduced to the 4…

Recently, some employers were polled to find out which skills are most important for young people working at their first jobs to have. This guide discusses how parents can help children prepare for the work world. Employers are interested in the academic skills of young people and use job application forms and interviews to evaluate them. They…