Development in the ability of 11-year-olds to solve numerical problems of addition, multiplication, and proportion was analysed by means of three Rasch models of change. The students, who had participated in a New Zealand numeracy project in 2002, comprised two groups that differed in socio-economic status: 1,274 students came from low…

The theoretical perspective outlined here offers an alternative to explanations of knowledge transfer that posit its source in the construction and application of abstract, context-independent knowledge structures. A case study analysis of an undergraduate student's attempt to solve a series of problems related to an elementary statistical…

This paper reports the results of a study of primary school mathematics teaching in northern Botswana in order to highlight the strategies teachers use in bi/multilingual classrooms. Questionnaire and interview data collection procedures were used. The findings, which are based on responses of randomly selected primary school teachers, confirmed…

Evaluating the statistical process is considered a higher order skill and has received little emphasis in instruction. This study analyses thirty 15-year-old students' responses to two statistics assessment tasks, which required evaluation of a statistical investigation. The SOLO taxonomy is used as a framework to develop a hierarchy of responses.…

Discussions of quantitative literacy have become increasingly important, and statistics educators are well aware of the link between statistics education and quantitative literacy. Both the statistics education and quantitative literacy movements have emphasized the importance of students practicing skills in multiple contexts--a goal also…

Calculus has been witnessing fundamental changes in its curriculum, with an increased emphasis on visualization. This mode for representing mathematical concepts is gaining more strength due to the advances in computer technology and the development of dynamical mathematical software. This paper focuses on the understanding of the function and its…

We investigated the common difficulties that students have with concepts related to rotational and rolling motion covered in the introductory physics courses. We compared the performance of calculus- and algebra-based introductory physics students with physics juniors who had learned rotational and rolling motion concepts in an intermediate level…

Mathematics majors' study of abstract algebra should provide these students with opportunities to connect what they are learning to their prior experiences with algebra in high school. This paper illustrates how such connections can be used to motivate the notion of binary operation and the axioms for a group.

We give an example of a student project that experimentally explores a topic in random graph theory. We use the "Combinatorica" package in "Mathematica" to estimate the minimum number of edges needed in a random graph to have a 50 percent chance that the graph is connected. We provide the "Mathematica" code and compare it to the known theoretical…

The usual formula for variance depending on rounding off the sample mean lacks precision, especially when computer programs are used for the calculation. The well-known simplification of the total sums of squares does not always give benefit. Since the variance of two observations is easily calculated without the use of a sample mean, and the…

The present paper deals with the problem of non-selective harvesting of a prey-predator system in which both the prey and the predator species obey the law of logistic growth and each predators functional response to the prey approaches a constant as the prey population increases. Boundedness of the exploited system is examined. The existence of…

Principals need to get away from traditional beliefs that equate math success solely with rote knowledge of math facts and the ability to calculate. Today, math instruction also is being directed to student understanding of essential concepts. Principals must learn what to look for when they visit math classrooms to make sure it is being taught…

In this article, the author discusses the perils of adhering to a data-driven model of instruction, and discusses how writing center coaches can become involved with all academic disciplines represented at their schools--even those with which they are not familiar--in order to help students learn how to think about the things they are studying and…

We examine the behavior of the curvature function associated with most common families of functions and curves, with the focus on establishing where maximum curvature occurs. Many examples are included for student illustrations. (Contains 18 figures.)

In this paper, results of a questionnaire about continuity of functions are analysed. The tested students attend Novi Sad grammar school. The aim of this test was to check the student's theoretical and visual knowledge of continuous functions at the end of their high school education. The questions were given with and without the graphs of…