Examined whether students' prereading and prearithmetic test results varied as a result of the teaching strategy used. Subjects were 446 teachers and 5,490 children, 4-6 years old, from Dutch infant classes 1 and 2 of primary education. Socioethnic background was found to be more significant in explaining test results than teaching method. (JPB)

Described is a student-produced bulletin board that illustrates that mathematics is a universal language and that mathematics is being created around the world. Presented are two approaches for resolving a problem involving three equations and three unknowns. (KR)

Describes study that was conducted to evaluate the effects of a computer-assisted remediation program on the mathematics skills and self-concept of teacher education students at a predominantly Black college. Socioeconomic status and sex differences are examined, and treatments of experimental and control groups are described. (five references)…

Discussion of the use of microcomputers by special education students highlights a study that compared the effects of a drill and practice program with an instructional computer game on the acquisition of multiplication skills among junior high and high school learning disabled students. (22 references) (LRW)

Describes responses of fifth to eighth grade students to different types of test items requiring estimation. Reports that performance differed by item format, types of numbers and operations in the items, and grade level of students. (Author/YP)

Investigates how Brazilian child candy sellers form and use mathematical understandings. Finds that sellers use knowledge acquired through business activity to work school problems, while only a limited part of school learning is applied to the out-of-school situations. (FMW)

Presents an "Africentric" approach to mathematics education built on the thinking and realities of African American children. The article explains what constitutes a foreign pedagogy to African American students and describes a three-year collaborative project with a middle school teacher who has implemented a pedagogy of social change…

A longitudinal study examined developments in preschoolers' understanding of literacy and numeracy, comparing learning models based on adult-child interactions or on children's learning processes at preschools with varied reflectivity levels. Children's understanding of symbols related to literacy and numeracy. Developments in their understanding…

Presents five activities focusing on mental computation and estimation for the K-3, 3-5, 4-6, and 6-8 grade levels that require the student, acting as a judge, to review solutions to problems and to pronounce and justify a verdict. Provides suggested materials, questions, possible extensions, answers, and worksheets for each activity. (MDH)

Presents a series of five activities that introduce division of fractions through real-world situations. Discusses problems related to resurfacing a highway, painting dividing stripes on a highway, covering one area A with another area B, looking for patterns, and maximizing the result of a division problem. Includes reproducible worksheets. (MDH)

Discusses how a single problem can be utilized to discuss mathematical skills and concepts at several different levels. Presents a problem involving fractions examined at the following four levels according to the abilities of the students: (1) finding solutions; (2) identifying methods for finding solutions; (3) exploring similar examples; and…

Discussed is the process of translating situations involving changing quantities into mathematical relationships. This process, called dynamical modeling, allows students to learn new mathematics while sharpening their algebraic skills. A description of dynamical systems, problem-solving methods, a graphical analysis, and available classroom…

Explores the role that symbolic-graphical calculators can play in the current calls for reform in the mathematics curriculum. Discusses symbolic calculators and graphing calculators in relation to problem solving, computational skills, and mathematics instruction. (MDH)

An urban teacher highlighted cost of living to make mathematics instruction more meaningful and help students develop problem-solving strategies. Sixth graders created and operated their own businesses in class, learning how to depend upon themselves and budget their money as they faced realistic problems with budgets, bills, and sales. (Author/SM)

This article compares measures of abstract thinking preference and divergent thinking to standard mathematics ability measures such as the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). In this study involving gifted tenth graders, mathematical creativity was found to be a special kind of creativity not necessarily related to divergent thinking ability. (PB)