In this study, effects of asking participants to make different types of considerations when solving a realistic word problem were investigated. A two-factorial experiment with the factors "addressing realistic considerations" (with vs. without) and "addressing mathematical operations" (with vs. without) was conducted. It was…

Background: The sophistication of young children's arithmetic problem-solving strategies can be influenced through experience and instructional intervention. One potential pathway is through encountering story problems where the location of the unknown quantity varies. Aims: The goal of the present study is to characterize how arithmetic…

Solving word problems is challenging for many children, but particularly for those with language difficulties. The objective was to examine the nature of the challenges experienced by children with language difficulties as they solved word problems in the context of a developmental-trajectory instructional sequence. We recruited 45 third graders…

Research on fostering learning about percentages within intelligent tutoring systems (ITSs) is limited. Additionally, there is a lack of data-driven approaches for improving the design of ITS to facilitate learning about percentages. To address these gaps, we first investigated whether students' understanding of basic mathematical skills (eg,…

Despite proficient math skills, students may struggle to make sense of and solve story problems. While educators are encouraged to promote the use of comprehension strategies, students must first understand vocabulary at all levels as they work to make sense of and solve math story problems. Language skills are a prerequisite for schema…

Compare problems are the most difficult type of word problems among primary school students, especially inconsistent problems, when the relational term is not consistent with the arithmetic operation required for the solution. The present study examines whether different methods help students successfully solve them and how these approaches…

The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to identify and evaluate the effects of individual characteristics associated with mathematical word problem-solving skills among elementary school-aged children and to unpack the quality of studies investigating these associations. The systematic review was reported according to the…

Our work investigated how six primary school students used a non-traditional method for adding and subtracting: the ABN method, a Spanish acronym for Open (method) Based on Numbers. Commognitive theory [Sfard, A. 2008. "Thinking as Communicating: Human Development, the Growth of Discourses, and Mathematizing." New York: Cambridge…

This study aimed to design a task in an everyday context to support high school students' exploration of the truth values of propositional conditionals and to understand their difficulties. The results showed that students could identify that the truth value of a propositional conditional is determined by two variables (the truth values of the…

This paper is written as a guide for any instructor seeking to develop the mathematical modeling process or open-ended problem solving in their courses. We describe a pedagogical approach to create mini modeling problems to develop the modeling process. These are problems that fall between traditional homework problems and open-ended modeling…

Successful word problem performance often requires understanding the linguistic relations between characters and objects. However, the keyword method promotes associating specific words with mathematical operations while neglecting the situational context. Research has thoroughly investigated the detrimental effects of individuals associating…

Primary school textbooks can enhance the acquisition of arithmetic word problem solving skills by offering diverse problems based on their semantic-mathematical structure with targeted reasoning aids, including schematics highlighting their mathematical structure. While certain countries, such as the USA and Singapore, have made progress in…

The development of a set of rubrics for teachers and curriculum designers interested in the quality of numeracy tasks emerged from our struggle with an attempt to clarify the distinction between numeracy and mathematics. Shifting our perspective from asking what numeracy and mathematics are to asking what they are about led to the…

This paper examined the ability of students to pose a problem in a free posing situation about sets in terms of the problem text, compatibility with mathematics principles, the problem type and structure, solvability, and mathematical complexity. Additionally, students were probed to determine the difficulties they encountered during the problem…

The purpose of this study is to provide reliable evidence of the observable correlates of the Aha! moment and what this means for moving from surface to deep thinking. The study analyses facial expressions and body language from video recordings of students solving problems, followed by interviews, focus groups, and surveys. The problem-solving…