• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.663-682
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• 2016

This study conducted an analysis of strategies that the 3rd to 6th grade elementary students used when they were solving problems of comparing the size of the fractions with like and unlike denominators, and unit fractions. Although there were slight differences in the students' use of strategies according to the problem types, students were found to use the 'part-whole strategy', 'transforming strategy', and 'between fractions strategy' frequently. But 'pieces strategy', 'unit fraction strategy', 'within fraction strategy', and 'equivalent fraction strategy' were not used frequently. In regard to the strategy use that is appropriate to the problem condition, it was found that students needed to use the 'unit fraction strategy', and the 'within fraction strategy', whereas there were many errors in their use of the 'between fractions strategy'. Based on the results, the study attempted to provide pedagogical implications in teaching and learning for comparing the size of the fractions.

• School Mathematics
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.123-138
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• 2006

The fraction concept consists of various meanings and is one of the more abstract and difficult in elementary school mathematics. This study intends to analyze the fraction concept from historical and psychological viewpoints, to examine the current elementary mathematics textbooks by these viewpoints and to seek the direction for improvement of it. Basic ideas about fraction are the partitioning - the dividing of a quantity into subparts of equal size - and about the part-whole relation. So these ideas are heavily emphasized in current textbooks. However, from the learner's point of view, situations related to different meanings of fraction concept draw qualitatively different response from students. So all the other meanings of fraction concept should be systematically represented in elementary mathematics textbooks. Especially based on historico-genetic principle, the current textbooks need the emphasis on the fraction as a measure and on constructing fraction concept by unit fraction as a unit.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.83-102
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• 2014

The purpose of this study was to explore students' understanding on units embedded in multiple interpretations of fractions: (a) part-whole relationships, (b) measures, (c) quotients, (d) ratios, and (e) operators. A total of 150 sixth graders in elementary schools were surveyed by a questionnaire comprised of 20 tasks in relation to multiple interpretations of fractions. As results, students' performance on units varied depending on the interpretations of fractions. Students had a tendency to regard the given whole as the unit, which led to incorrect answers. This study suggests that students should have rich experience to identify and operate various units in the context of multiple fractions.

• Journal of Elementary Mathematics Education in Korea
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.323-345
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• 2019

This study examines the introduction of fractions in the third grade mathematics textbooks focusing on stages of units coordination and suggests alternative activities to help students develop their understanding of fractions. As results, the sessions of introduction units in textbooks was well organized to allow students to construct more extensive fraction schemes (i.e., Part-whole fraction scheme → Partitive unit fraction scheme → Partitive fraction scheme). However, most of the activities in textbooks were related to stages 1 and 2 of units coordination. In particular, the operations and partitioning schemes (i.e., equi-partitioning and splitting schemes), which are key to the development of students' fraction knowledge, were not explicitly revealed. Fraction schemes also did not extend to the Iterative fraction scheme, which is central to the construction of improper fractions. Based on these results, this study is expected to provide implications for the introduction of fractions in textbooks focusing on stages of units coordination to teachers and textbook developers.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.87-116
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• 2020

The purpose of this study is to explore how units-coordination ability is related to understanding fraction concepts. For this purpose, a teaching experiment was conducted with one fourth grade student, Eunseo for four months(2019.3. ~ 2019.6.). We analyzed in details how Eunseo's units-coordinating operations related to her understanding of fraction changed during the teaching experiment. At an early stage, Eunseo with a partitive fraction scheme recognized fractions as another kind of natural numbers by manipulating fractions within a two-levels-of-units structure. As she simultaneously recognized proper fraction and a referent whole unit as a multiple of the unit fraction, she became to distinguish fractions from natural numbers in manipulating proper fractions. Eunseo with a reversible partitive fraction scheme constructed a natural number greater than 1, as having an interiorized three-levels-of-units structure and established an improper fraction with three levels of units in activity. Based on the results of this study, conclusions and pedagogical implications were presented.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.117-134
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• 2020

Based on the current curriculum, students learn the concept of fraction in the 3rd grade for the first time. At that time, fraction is introduced as whole-part relationship. But as the idea of fraction expands to improper fraction and so on, fraction as measurement would be naturally appeared. In that situation where fraction as whole-part relationship and fraction as measurement are dealt together, it is necessary for students to get experiences of understanding and exploring unit and whole adequately in order to fully understand the concept of fractions. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze how to deal with unit fractions, how to implement activities to find the standard of reference from the part, and what visual representations were used to help students to understand the concept of fractions in elementary mathematics textbooks from the 7th to the 2015 revised curriculum. And we analyzed 60 3rd graders' understanding of finding and drawing the whole by looking at the part. Several didactical implications for teaching the concept of fractions were derived from the discussion according to the analysis results.

• The Mathematical Education
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.1-21
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• 2023

The purpose of this study is to explore how the student, who interiorized three levels of units, constructed fractions as multipliers by analyzing her ways of conceiving improper fractions with three levels of units and coordinating two three-levels-of-units structures. Among the data collected from our teaching experiment with two 4th grade students meeting 13 times for three months, we focus on how Seyeon, one of the participating students, wrote numerical expressions in the form of "× fraction" for the given situations using her splitting operation for composite units. Given the importance of splitting operation for composite units for the construction of fractions as multipliers, implications for further research are discussed.

• School Mathematics
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.59-75
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• 2017

This study analyzed the $6^{th}$ graders' constructions about fraction operations and schemes and figured out the relationships quantitatively between operations and schemes through the written test of 432 students. The results of this study showed that most of students could do partitioning operation well, however, there were many students who had difficulties on iterating operation. There were more students who constructed partitioning operation prior to iterating operation than the opposite. The rate of students who constructed high schemes was lower than that of students who constructed low schemes according to the hierarchy of fraction schemes. Especially, there were many students who construct partitive unit fraction scheme but not partitive fraction scheme, because they could compose unit fraction but not do iterating it. And there were the high correlations between fraction operations and schemes. Given these result, this paper suggests implications about the teaching and learning of fraction.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.113-127
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to justify the fraction division algorithm in elementary mathematics by applying the definition of natural number division to fraction division. First, we studied the contents which need to be taken into consideration in teaching fraction division in elementary mathematics and suggested the criteria. Based on this research, we examined whether the previous methods which are used to derive the standard algorithm are appropriate for the course of introducing the fraction division. Next, we defined division in fraction and suggested the unit-circle partition model and the square partition model which can visualize the definition. Finally, we confirmed that the standard algorithm of fraction division in both partition and measurement is naturally derived through these models.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.129-147
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• 2019

Because of the various concepts and meanings of fractions and the difficulty of learning, studies to improve the teaching methods of fraction have been carried out. Particularly, because there are various methods of teaching depending on the type of fractions or the models or methods used for problem solving in fraction operations, many researches have been implemented. In this study, I analyzed the fractional operations of CCSSM-CA and its U.S. textbooks. It was CCSSM-CA revised and presented in California and the textbooks of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Co., which reflect the content and direction of CCSSM-CA. As a result of the analysis, although the grades presented in CCSSM-CA and Korean textbooks were consistent in the addition and subtraction of fractions, there are the features of expressing fractions by the sum of fractions with the same denominator or unit fraction and the evaluation of the appropriateness of the answer. In the multiplication and division of fractions, there is a difference in the presentation according to the grades. There are the features of the comparison the results of products based on the number of factor, presenting the division including the unit fractions at first, and suggesting the solving of division problems using various ways.