Week 6:Explore LOGO Programming and suggest how students can use it to develop their Mathematical Thinking
For more information on the activity, go to
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12852685/Logo-Programme-Activity?secret_password=1h36g3n2iu3dqd8iygzu
Friday, February 27, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Euclidean Geometry Activity
For Week 5, the activity was on how to Explore Euclidean and suggest activities that students can do to explore and learn a geometry topic. For more information, go to
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12489773/Euclidean-Geometry-Activity?secret_password=yxhmiqvd413wd59sgi6
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12489773/Euclidean-Geometry-Activity?secret_password=yxhmiqvd413wd59sgi6
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
PM 5402
Hello there,
Just few days ago, we had another lecture on PM 5402 and learn to use some of the activities listed in the e-journal of education.
One of the activities that caught my interest was on Maths Fun in Geometry (Angles and Degrees). I found this activity on the types and measurement of angles as not only fun and creative but a good exercise especially for upper primary pupils.
Teachers can also use this as part of their lesson either during introduction or as their reinforcement activity. It can be a tutorial lesson for pupils with different abilities or for those who's absent from the class where they can just link to this website for them to try. Pupils can work in pairs doing this activity as they can help and discuss with each other.
It can be used as our assessment where teachers can analyze pupils' work from the given exercise on this website. This activity also provides step by step explanation on the process of identifying angles and how to measure angles.
This provides opportunity to help pupils learn some of underlying areas of math modeling and computer simulation.
Just few days ago, we had another lecture on PM 5402 and learn to use some of the activities listed in the e-journal of education.
One of the activities that caught my interest was on Maths Fun in Geometry (Angles and Degrees). I found this activity on the types and measurement of angles as not only fun and creative but a good exercise especially for upper primary pupils.
Teachers can also use this as part of their lesson either during introduction or as their reinforcement activity. It can be a tutorial lesson for pupils with different abilities or for those who's absent from the class where they can just link to this website for them to try. Pupils can work in pairs doing this activity as they can help and discuss with each other.
It can be used as our assessment where teachers can analyze pupils' work from the given exercise on this website. This activity also provides step by step explanation on the process of identifying angles and how to measure angles.
This provides opportunity to help pupils learn some of underlying areas of math modeling and computer simulation.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Objectives
The objectives of my research are to investigate teachers' views on drill and practice, how primary teachers' currently dealing with the teaching of mental computational skills and most importantly is to find alternative strategies to enhance better learning in Mathematics in line with the New Education System.
Methodology
Observations on Mathematics teaching and learning in classrooms, setting up interviews to collect personal background, teachers' opinions and information on learning materials.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Drill and Practice
What is drill and practice?
“Students need well-timed practice of the skills they are learning so that they are not handicapped in developing the other strands of proficiency…When students practice procedures they do not understand, there is a danger they will practice incorrect procedures, thereby making it more difficult to learn correct ones.”(Kilpatrick J., Swafford, J. and Findell, B. 2001)
Bright, Harvey and Wheeler (1979), and Rogers and Miller (1984) found that games are effective for assisting students to acquire, practice, and transfer mathematical concepts and problem-solving abilities. Klein and Freitag (1991) found that the use of instructional games increases student interests, satisfaction, and continuing motivation.
“Students need well-timed practice of the skills they are learning so that they are not handicapped in developing the other strands of proficiency…When students practice procedures they do not understand, there is a danger they will practice incorrect procedures, thereby making it more difficult to learn correct ones.”(Kilpatrick J., Swafford, J. and Findell, B. 2001)
Bright, Harvey and Wheeler (1979), and Rogers and Miller (1984) found that games are effective for assisting students to acquire, practice, and transfer mathematical concepts and problem-solving abilities. Klein and Freitag (1991) found that the use of instructional games increases student interests, satisfaction, and continuing motivation.
Welcome to My Blog
Hello, I started this blog just to share my opinion on my research study on teachers' implications on drill and practice in a classroom in the areas of Mental Computation.
Teachers tend to use drill and practice when teaching mental computation so as to save their time and also in their mindset to make pupils to be able to remember or mentally compute numbers. This practice is a norm for them to use on their pupils to be able to learn everything as teachers struggle to finish with their syllabus and revision before PSR Examination. But questions arise about teachers' theoretical knowledge on what is drill and practice? And to what effect their method of drill and practice has on their pupils?
Thompson (1999a) summarises earlier literature to give four reasons for teaching mental calculation :
1. Most calculations in adult life are done mentally
2. Mental work develops insight into the number system (‘number sense’)
3. Mental work develops problem solving skills
4. Mental work promotes success in later written calculations
Yet it is possible to imagine pupils being not able to calculate quite quickly and doing well on tests in mental calculation, without developing the abilities that would bring enhancements to other number work, improved problem solving, better ‘number sense’ and competence as adults.
Research on mental computation has proposed specific connections among mental computation and aspects of number sense, in particular, number facts knowledge and estimation (Heirdsfield, 1996; Sowder, 1992)
Teachers tend to use drill and practice when teaching mental computation so as to save their time and also in their mindset to make pupils to be able to remember or mentally compute numbers. This practice is a norm for them to use on their pupils to be able to learn everything as teachers struggle to finish with their syllabus and revision before PSR Examination. But questions arise about teachers' theoretical knowledge on what is drill and practice? And to what effect their method of drill and practice has on their pupils?
Thompson (1999a) summarises earlier literature to give four reasons for teaching mental calculation :
1. Most calculations in adult life are done mentally
2. Mental work develops insight into the number system (‘number sense’)
3. Mental work develops problem solving skills
4. Mental work promotes success in later written calculations
Yet it is possible to imagine pupils being not able to calculate quite quickly and doing well on tests in mental calculation, without developing the abilities that would bring enhancements to other number work, improved problem solving, better ‘number sense’ and competence as adults.
Research on mental computation has proposed specific connections among mental computation and aspects of number sense, in particular, number facts knowledge and estimation (Heirdsfield, 1996; Sowder, 1992)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)