A Study of the Representation in the Elementary Mathematical Problem-Solving Process

초등 수학 문제해결 과정에 사용되는 표현 방법에 대한 연구

The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of visual representation used in problem solving process and examine the representation types the students used to successfully solve the problem and focus on systematizing the visual representation method using the condition students suggest in the problems. To achieve the goal of this study, following questions have been raised. (1) what characteristic does the representation the elementary school students used in the process of solving a math problem possess? (2) what types of representation did students use in order to successfully solve elementary math problem? 240 4th graders attending J Elementary School located in Seoul participated in this study. Qualitative methodology was used for data analysis, and the analysis suggested representation method the students use in problem solving process and then suggested the representation that can successfully solve five different problems. The results of the study as follow. First, the students are not familiar with representing with various methods in the problem solving process. Students tend to solve the problem using equations rather than drawing a diagram when they can not find a word that gives a hint to draw a diagram. The method students used to restate the problem was mostly rewriting the problem, and they could not utilize a table that is essential in solving the problem. Thus, various errors were found. Students did not simplify the complicated problem to find the pattern to solve the problem. Second, the image and strategy created as the problem was read and the affected greatly in solving the problem. The first image created as the problem was read made students to draw different diagram and make them choose different strategies. The study showed the importance of first image by most of the students who do not pass the trial and error step and use the strategy they chose first. Third, the students who successfully solved the problems do not solely depend on the equation but put them in the form which information are decoded. They do not write difficult equation that they can not solve, but put them into a simplified equation that know to solve the problem. On fraction problems, they draw a diagram to solve the problem without calculation, Fourth, the students who. successfully solved the problem drew clear diagram that can be understood with intuition. By representing visually, unnecessary information were omitted and used simple image were drawn using symbol or lines, and to clarify the relationship between the information, numeric explanation was added. In addition, they restricted use of complicated motion line and dividing line, proper noun in the word problems were not changed into abbreviation or symbols to clearly restate the problem. Adding additional information was useful source in solving the problem.

시각적 표현은 문제해결을 이끄는 안내자의 역할을 수행하며, 문제해결의 결정적 단서를 제공하는 유용한 도구이다. 수학과 교수-학습에서 교사는 시각적 표현의 중요성을 강조하여야 하며, 아동은 문제상황에 대한 감각을 길러야 한다. 따라서 본 연구의 목적은 아동이 문제해결 과정에서 사용하는 시각적 표현의 특징을 분석하고 성공적으로 문제를 해결한 학생들의 표현 유형을 정리하여, 아동이 문제에서 제시하는 여러 가지 조건을 적절한 시각적 표현 방법으로 조직화하게 하는데 시사점을 주고자 하는데 있다. 이러한 연구 목적을 달성하기 위하여 아동의 문제해결지를 분석한 결과, 초등 수학 문제해결 과정에서 대부분의 아동은 다양한 방법으로 조건을 표현하는데 익숙하지 못하였으며 시행착오 단계를 거치지 않고 처음 선택한 전략을 끝까지 사용하는 경향을 보여 문제를 읽고 생긴 처음 이미지가 문제해결에 중요한 영향을 끼친다는 것을 알았다. 또한 성공적으로 문제를 해결한 아동은 계산식에 의존하기보다는 여러 가지 정보를 해결할 수 있는 형태로 표현하여 문제를 해결하였으며, 문제해결 과정을 직관적으로 파악할 수 있을 정도의 명료하고 조직화된 그림을 그린다는 것을 알 수 있었다.