The Education Technology Center (ETC) Fractions Group works to investigate well-documented difficulties that children have in understanding fractions. A central assumption underlying this group's inquiry is that students' difficulties in manipulating fractions arise from their lack of understanding about the nature of fractions. In order to learn…

Discussed are preservice elementary teachers' misconceptions and inconsistent beliefs about multiplication and division with decimals. Sources of inconsistencies and recommendations for overcoming inconsistencies are included. (KR)

The objective of this paper is to explain the need for and defend the sufficiency of the child's-play method of teaching the place value notation concept to preschool and elementary school children. Discussion first illustrates error patterns of school children in the use and interpretation of place value notation, arguing that the errors reflect…