Recently there has been a keen interest in the area of mathematics and finding the best methods of instruction. For instance, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has placed new levels of accountability on educators for the success of students with their education, especially in mathematics. Certain areas of mathematics, such as Algebra, have been…

Manipulatives have been used in many mathematics classrooms across many age groups with the aim of helping students to understand abstract concepts through concrete, kinesthetic, and visual experiences. In this paper, after we provide a background for the use of physical and virtual manipulatives in teaching and learning of mathematics, we will…

Contextual mathematics is an area of mathematics teaching and learning through which researchers and educators believe that mathematics is better taught, and learned, if connected to real-life situations and problems. It is also very helpful if it makes sense in the students' world. Thus, the author decided to start a project by creating a blog,…

This article describes the process of development of assessment instruments for a three-year longitudinal comparative study that focused on evaluating American high school students' mathematics learning from two distinct approaches to content organization: curriculum built around a sequence of three full-year courses (Algebra 1, Geometry, and…

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the effectiveness of incorporating study strategies in a developmental mathematics/college algebra program. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a quasiexperimental methodology. Results show that students reported increases on the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI)…

Knowledge of mathematical equivalence, the principle that 2 sides of an equation represent the same value, is a foundational concept in algebra, and this knowledge develops throughout elementary and middle school. Using a construct-modeling approach, we developed an assessment of equivalence knowledge. Second through sixth graders (N = 175)…

Despite being known as the land of opportunity, the United States is far from equitable when it comes to the mathematics that students have the opportunity to learn. In this article, the authors explore the extent to which students in different schools and districts have an equal opportunity to learn mathematics. Specifically, they discuss…

This study researched a popularly used mathematics intervention, an extended time algebra class, and associated teacher professional development, to determine the effectiveness of this intervention on improving student mathematics performance. The study investigated whether providing additional time in class to struggling students along with…

The Carnegie Learning Cognitive Tutor curricula are based on cognitive models, which include a representation of the learner's thinking, strategies, and misconceptions. The Cognitive Tutor curricula typically speed up learning and yield greater learning as compared to traditional math curricula (Morgan & Ritter, 2002; Sarkis, 2004; Koedinger,…

2009 was the final year of parallel implementation for Mathematical Methods Units 3 and 4 and Mathematical Methods (CAS) Units 3 and 4. From 2006-2009 there was a common technology-free short answer examination that covered the same function, algebra, calculus and probability content for both studies with corresponding expectations for key…

Stakeholders in higher education are addressing the decreasing success rates in college mathematics courses. Success in mathematics courses has been one factor related to students successfully obtaining a college degree, and the primary predictor of success in mathematics is a student's belief in his or her ability to achieve a particular grade in…

Success rates in California community college developmental mathematics courses have hovered around 50% for decades. These gatekeeper courses have prevented many students from earning college degrees. Since community college is the starting point for the majority of California's potential college graduates and the majority of these students…

Although it is difficult to find any current literature that does not encourage use of multiple representations in mathematics classrooms, there has been very limited research that compared such practice to student achievement level on standardized tests. This study examined the associations between students' achievement levels and their (a)…

Community colleges are a key part of developmental education programs. Research shows that a large majority of first year students have to take one or more remedial or developmental courses. The failure rates of developmental students indicate there is a need for intervention. The purpose of this study was to compare the final exam scores of…

This article presents the results of a study focused on the issue of how proctored testing affects student test scores in a formal Intermediate Algebra course setting. The study follows a model of assessment in which students in one group have taken two of their five unit exams as proctored tests along with a proctored comprehensive final exam,…