• Communications of Mathematical Education
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.229-252
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• 2008

The purpose of this research was to make fair assessment methods which took into account characteristics of mathematically underachievers. The researchers devised an descriptive tests and interviews and applied them to the mathematics underachievers who could not reveal their achievements in the traditional assessment and then analyzed their cognitive and affective characteristics in the alternative assessments. After selecting three students by the normal assessment made of simple subjective and multiple choice questions, the cognitive and affective characteristics found in the general assessment were reflected to the descriptive tests and interviews. The descriptive tests and interviews are comprised of descriptive narrations and informal interview questions. After the assessment, the teacher and students gave feedbacks one another. All the assessment activities were recorded by a camcorder to analyze cognitive and affective characteristics of the children. Throughout the research, the following conclusions were made. The mathematics underachievers showed the characteristics which didn't appeared in the normal assessment. They showed normal abilities of problem solving and communication In the cognitive area. Also they brought in positive result in most parts in the affective area. However, the student B displayed considerable ability of mathematical thinking that is over the average level of mathematical underachievers. This implies that we can definite the mathematical underachievers differently when we use the detailed and relief assessment method instead of the traditional assessment. On the other hand, one student tended to depend on the teacher and another student overheard what the others talk during the study. This defect should be complemented by the further studies about assessment method for the mathematical underachievers. Also appropriate assessment methods should be made for applying to the various mathematical underachievers. Many studies have been concentrated on the learning for mathematical underachievers but there is little concern about the assessment for the mathematical underachievers. However it is the fundamental way to reduce the number of mathematics underachievers that we construct consistent learning methods and assessments for the mathematical underachievers.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.95-111
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• 2015

The purpose of this study is to analyze cases on teaching solutions exploration of Wythoff's game through using the analogy for the gifted elementary students, to suggest useful teaching methods. Students recognized structural similarity among problems on the basis of relevance of conditions of problems. The discovery of structural similarity improves the ability to solve problems. Although 2 groups-NIM game with surface similarity is not helpful in solving Wythoff's game, Queen's move game with structural similarity makes it easier for students to solve Wythoff's game. Useful teaching methods to find solutions of Wythoff's game through using the analogy are as follow. Encoding process helps students make sense of the game. It is significant to help students realize how many stones are remained and how the location of Queen can be expressed by the ordered pair. Inferring process helps students find a solution of 2 groups-NIM game and Queen's move game. It is necessary to find a winning strategy through reversely solving method. Mapping process helps students discover surface similarity and structural similarity through identifying commonalities between the two games. It is crucial to recognize the relationship among the two games based on the teaching in the Encoding process. Application process encourages students to find a solution of Wythoff's game. It is more important to find a solution by using the structural similarity of the Queen's move game rather than reversely solving method.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.163-177
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• 2007

Studies on mathematically gifted students have been conducted following Krutetskii. There still exists a necessity for a more detailed research on how these students' mathematical competence is actually displayed during the problem solving process. In this study, it was attempted to analyse the algebraic thinking process in the problem solving a peg puzzle in which 4 mathematically gifted students, who belong to the upper 0.01% group in their grade of elementary school in Korea. They solved and generalized the straight line peg puzzle. Mathematically gifted elementary school students had the tendency to find a general structure using generic examples rather than find inductive rules. They did not have difficulty in expressing their thoughts in letter expressions and in expressing their answers in written language; and though they could estimate general patterns while performing generalization of two factors, it was revealed that not all of them can solve the general formula of two factors. In addition, in the process of discovering a general pattern, it was confirmed that they prefer using diagrams to manipulating concrete objects or using tables. But as to whether or not they verify their generalization results using generalized concrete cases, individual difference was found. From this fact it was confirmed that repeated experiments, on the relationship between a child's generalization ability and his/her behavioral pattern that verifies his/her generalization result through application to a concrete case, are necessary.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.63-78
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• 2014

Integrative STEM education is an engineering design-based learning approach that purposefully integrates the content and process of STEM disciplines and can extend its concept to integration with other school subjects. This study was part of fundamental research to develop an integrative STEM education program based on the science inquiry process. The specific objectives of this study were to review relevant literature related to STEM education, analyze the key elements and value of STEM education, develop an integrative STEM education model based on the science inquiry process, and suggest an exemplary program. This study conducted a systematic literature review to confirm key elements for integrative STEM education and finally constructed the integrative STEM education model through analyzing key inquiry processes extracted from prior studies. This model turned out to be valid because the average CVR value obtained from expert group was 0.78. The integrative STEM education model based on the science inquiry process consisted of two perspectives of the content and inquiry process. The content can contain science, technology, engineering, and liberal arts/artistic topics that students can learn in a real world context/problem. Also, the inquiry process is a problem-solving process that contains design and construction and is based on the science inquiry. It could integrate the technological/engineering problem solving process and/or mathematical problem solving process. Students can improve their interest in STEM subjects by analyzing real world problems, designing possible solutions, and implementing the best design as well as acquire knowledge, inquiry methods, and skills systematically. In addition, the developed programs could be utilized in schools to enhance students' understanding of STEM disciplines and interest in mathematics and science. The programs could be used as a basis for fostering convergence literacy and cultivating integrated and design-based problem-solving ability.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.327-344
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• 2006

This study examined the proof levels and understanding of constituents of proving by three mathematically gifted 6th grade korean students, who belonged to the highest 1% in elementary school, through observation and interviews on the problem-solving process in relation to constructing a rectangle of which area equals the sum of two other rectangles. We assigned the students with Clairaut's geometric problems and analyzed their proof levels and their difficulties in thinking related to the understanding of constituents of proving. Analysis of data was made based on the proof level suggested by Waring (2000) and the constituents of proving presented by Galbraith(1981), Dreyfus & Hadas(1987), Seo(1999). As a result, we found out that the students recognized the meaning and necessity of proof, and they peformed some geometric proofs if only they had teacher's proper intervention.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.49-70
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• 2002

There have recently been increasing exchanges between South and North Korea in many areas of society, involving politics, economics, culture, education. In response to these developments, research activities are more strongly demanded in each of these areas to help prepare for the final unification of the two parts of the nation. In the area of mathematics education, scholars have started to conduct comparative studies of mathematics education in South and North Korea. As a response to the growing demand of the time, in this thesis we compared the secondary mathematics education in South Korea with that in North Korea. To begin with, we examined the background of education, in North Korea, particularly predominant ideological, epistemological and teaching theoretical aspects of education in North Korea. Thereafter, we compared the mathematics curriculum of South Korea with that of North Korea. On the basis of these examinations, we compared the secondary school mathematics textbooks of South and North Korea, and we attempted to suggest a guideline for researches preparing for the unification of the mathematics curriculum of South and North Korea. As a communist society, North Korea awards the socialist ideology the supreme rank and treats all school subjects as instrumental tools that are subordinated to the dominant communist ideology. On the other hand, under the socialist ideology North Korea also emphasizes the achievement of the objective of socialist economic development by expanding the production of material wealth. As such, mathematics in North Korea is seen as a tool subject for training skilled technical hands and fostering science and technology, hence promoting the socialist material production and economic development. Hence, the mathematics education of North Korea adopts a so-called "awakening teaching method," and emphasizes the approaches that combine intuition with logical explanation using materials related with the ideology or actual life. These basic viewpoints of North Korea on mathematics education are different from those of South Korea, which emphasize the problem-solving ability and acquisition of academic mathematical knowledge, and which focus on organizing as well as discovering knowledge of learners' own accord. In comparison of the secondary school mathematics textbooks used in South and North Korea, we looked through external forms, contents, quantity of each area of school mathematics, viewpoints of teaching, and term. We have identified similarities in algebra area and differences in geometry area especially in teaching sequence and approaching method. Many differences are also found in mathematical terms. Especially, it is found that North Korea uses mathematical terms in Hangul more actively than South Korea. We examined the specific topics that are treated in both South and North Korea, "outer-center & inner-center of triangle" and "mathematical induction", and identified such differences more concretely. Through this comparison, it was found that the concrete heterogeneity in the textbooks largely derive from the differences in the basic ideological viewpoints between South and North Korea. On the basis of the above findings, we attempted to make some suggestions for the researches preparing for the unification in the area of secondary mathematics education.

• School Mathematics
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.19-37
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• 2014

This study investigated the degree of understanding pre-service teachers' random variable concept, based on the attention and the importance for developing pre-service teachers' ability on statistical reasoning in statistics education. To accomplish this, the subject of this study was 70 pre-service teachers belonged to three universities respectively. The teachers were given to 7 tasks on random variable and requested to solve them in 40 minutes. The tasks consisted of three contents in large; 1) one was on the definition of random variables, 2) the other was on the understanding of random variables in different/diverse conditions, and 3) another was on problem solving relevant to random variable concept. The findings are as follows. First, while 20% of pre-service teachers understood the definition of random variable correctly, most teachers could not distinguish between random variable and variable or probability. Second, there was a significant difference in understanding random variables in different/diverse conditions. Namely, the degree of understanding on the continuous random variable was superior to that of discrete random variable and also the degree of understanding on the equal distribution was superior to that of unequality distribution. Third, three types of problems relevant to random variable concept dealt with in this study were finding a sample space and an elementary event, and finding a probability value. In result, the teachers responded to the problem on finding a probability value most correctly and on the contrary to this, they had the mot difficulty in solving the problem on finding a sample space.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.89-110
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• 2004

The purpose of this study is to identify the significant characteristics shown in the field of mathematics by a gifted child, the educational curriculum for this child, and to find what has to be set in place in the areas of teacher's teaching methods and programs. The important aspect of these ideas is that one has to completely understand and know the characteristics of the gifted in order to give them the opportunity to discover their underlying talents and to develop upon those skills by giving them suitable and appropriate education for their intellectual state. This study focuses on the thoughts and behavior of a gifted male child, from his third to fifth grade, and the study shows the results and analysis of data gathered from close observation and interview, and a collection of documents gathered from the child. This study is analyzed from three different perspectives: 1. The typical life and surroundings of this gifted child, and how he was raised in this particular environment. This also shows the significant event that allowed others to recognize him as gifted. 2. Identification of how a gifted child's mind works in the field of mathematics. This attempts to analyze methods the child uses to arrive at a solution to a problem. 3. Exploration of mathematical attitude of the child. This shows the child's interest in mathematics, and the willingness to find better and more efficient ways to reach a solution. This also shows the child's ability to explain his purpose and methods of problem solving in detail, and the focus and clarity in communication of mathematics. This study will enlighten the readers with information on the importance of advanced education specifically designed for the gifted. In development of advanced education programs, it is necessary to comprehend the minds of the mathematically gifted, and furthermore, this will help in defining an appropriate teaching method and curriculum for a better equipped educational system.

• Journal of Elementary Mathematics Education in Korea
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.471-489
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• 2012

2007 Curriculum Revision adopted new Inquiry Activities in mathematical textbooks. So it is critical to analyze the problems of actual application of Inquiry activities in the classrooms. For this purpose, we analyzed the Inquiry activities of Measurement Area of the textbooks and find the appropriate solutions. Secondly, we develop the reorganization materials to fix and solve the existing problems found in the previous problem analysis, and apply the development materials and examine the effects afterwards. The results of the survey indicated that most of teachers are well aware of the importance of Inquiry Activities. However, many teachers answered that Inquiry activities does contain neither diverse strategic approaches nor solutions accommodating with various learning levels of students. The most difficult points to educate Inquiry Activities are that it is difficult to teach students based on individual learning level and that activities consist of mainly short answers that makes it difficult to do in-depth Inquiry Activities. Analyzing Inquiry Activities in the textbook shows that Inquiry Activities in some chapters were constructed as simple sentence questions or presented with the solving process in the questions themselves. The following application classes were implemented by partially taking advantage of the newly developed reorganization materials. Then, the effects were measured by before and after questionnaires, the survey to teachers, and the results of activities. The reorganization materials were effective at arousing the curiosity from students as well as enabling the natural ability-level driven classes.

• Journal of Elementary Mathematics Education in Korea
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.843-863
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• 2010

The basic purpose of 2007 revision curriculum is content of activity oriented, management of differentiated instruction, communication, introduction of story mathematics, mathematical exploration and problem solving ability and so on. In this paper, we investigate some characteristics of number teaching in the primary school of New Zealand. Especially, focused on materials and methods and so on. So we've got the following results. First, there are no fundamental differences in materials and methods in teaching number between Korea and New Zealand but in New Zealand there are no national textbook like us so there is a possibility not to teach number systematically like our Korea. On the contrary, they divide number region from one to six level and are offering achievement objects, suggestive learning experiences, sample assessment activities for each level and also they do not guide activities itself in detail like us and so have learners themselves think about the given problems. Second, there is a strategy stage in getting knowledge about number in New Zealand and so children can take advantage of this steps according to the type of problems. Third, it must be developed some materials and idea to reach the learning purpose rousing interest of children.