An Attempt to Understand Students' Understanding of Basic Algebra.

Autor/in	Sleeman, D.
Institution	Stanford Univ., CA. Dept. of Computer Science.
Titel	An Attempt to Understand Students' Understanding of Basic Algebra.
Quelle	(1984), (36 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Algebra; Artificial Intelligence; Cognitive Processes; Comprehension; Computer Assisted Instruction; Junior High Schools; Mathematics Education; Mathematics Instruction; Mathematics Skills; Models; Problem Solving; Secondary School Mathematics + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Künstliche Intelligenz; Cognitive process; Kognitiver Prozess; Verstehen; Verständnis; Computer based training; Computerunterstützter Unterricht; Sekundarstufe I; Mathematische Bildung; Mathematics lessons; Mathematikunterricht; Mathmatics achievement; Mathematics ability; Mathematische Kompetenz; Analogiemodell; Problemlösen
Abstract	This paper reports the results obtained with a group of 24 14-year-old students when presented with a set of algebra tasks by the Leeds Modelling System (LMS). These same students were given a comparable paper-and-pencil test and detailed interviews some 4 months later. The latter studies uncovered several kinds of student misunderstanding that LMS had not detected. Some students had profound misunderstandings of algebraic notation; others used strategies such as substituting numbers for variables until the equation balanced. Additionally, it appears that the student errors fall into several distinct classes: namely, manipulative, parsing, clerical and "random". LMS and its rule database have been enhanced as the result of this experiment, and so LMS is now able to diagnose the majority of the errors encountered in this experiment. Finally, the paper gives a process-orientated explanation for student errors, and re-examines related work in cognitive modelling in the light of the types of student errors reported in this experiment. Misgeneralization is a mechanism suggested to explain some of the mal-rules noted in this study. (Author)
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC