In Australia, more attention is being paid to inclusion of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (the so-called STEM subjects) concepts in early childhood education and care curricula. In addition, the focus on the quality of learning in the years prior to school is a growing priority, evidenced by pre-election promises to extend the…

Mathematics education increasingly happens online and is not bound by the local context. This means mathematics learning and the learner may be defined by international private corporations as well as by national and school curricula. In this paper, I draw on a study of online mathematics instructional programmes used in New Zealand primary…

Mathematics creativity is very important in studying mathematics at every level of education but less attention is paid to it in the teaching-learning process and this has resulted to poor performance in the subject. The study investigated how activity based learning approach can enhance the creative skills of primary school pupils. A sample of…

The questions that teachers ask to elicit student reasoning are among the most important aspects of productive mathematics talk. These questions--often referred to as "press for reasoning"--offer teachers an effective tool for helping students explicate the concepts and principles that undergird their strategies (Kazemi and Stipek 2009).…

This article investigates the interplay of time words with how children position hands on an analog clock. Using a mathematics discourse framework (Sfard, 2008), we analyzed how students interpreted precise (e.g., 2:30) and relative (e.g., half past 11) times, finding that particular words are dynamically interwoven with activity. Interviews with…

We are developing an approach to teaching important proportionality-based concepts to first grade students in a way that supports students' future progress in the domain. We consider the proportionality between magnitudes as a basic relationship behind multiple cases, usually described mathematically as ratio or rate. The core of our strategy is…

This research investigates the potential for a one-to-one coaching tool used by adults other than teachers to be able to deliver greater mathematics progress for primary school children without adding significantly to school costs. Plus 1 and Power of 2 (+1 and Po2) are workbooks designed to be used by adults other than teachers working on a…

Robot toys can be used to promote STEM subjects, particularly coding and mathematics. The lesson described in this article illustrates how a robot toy was used with a number line to explore equality and missing addends in Year 1. The lesson progression models how activities can be sequenced to build on developing understandings while supporting…

Fluency in mathematics is more than adeptly using basic facts or implementing algorithms. It is not about speed or recall. Real fluency is about choosing strategies that are efficient, flexible, lead to accurate solutions, and are appropriate for the given situation. Developing fluency is also a matter of equity and access for all learners. The…

Fluency in mathematics is more than adeptly using basic facts or implementing algorithms. It is not about speed or recall. Real fluency is about choosing strategies that are efficient, flexible, lead to accurate solutions, and are appropriate for the given situation. Developing fluency is also a matter of equity and access for all learners. The…

For many years, mathematics research has focused on finding ways to help students improve their math performance. These efforts have led to the conclusion that building a strong mathematics foundation is associated with greater achievement across time. Students who develop number sense and learn to use efficient strategies at an early age are more…

Although there has been profound evidence showing the positive correlation between spatial abilities and math performances, we still know very little about how and why spatial thinking facilitates the learning of mathematics. This dissertation unpacks several aspects of mathematics that are embedded in learning and playing an ancient and rich game…

Purpose: The purpose of this journal-ready dissertation was to determine the degree to which the economic status and ethnicity/race of Texas Grade 4 boys and girls in special education are related to their mathematics performance on Texas state-mandated assessment. In the first article, the purpose was to ascertain the effect of the economic…

The United States must grow its science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) trained workforce in order to fill the jobs projected to be in demand. One of the ways in which this can be done is to tap into the vast population of minorities and women who are underrepresented in the STEM fields. The United States has been looking for ways…

Using the theoretical constructs of double instrumental genesis and instrumental distance, in this article, I examine case studies of four primary school teachers (K-5) in British Columbia, Canada, who implemented the multi-touch, iPad application TouchTimes (hereafter, TT) into their mathematics teaching. This novel digital technology provides…