• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.935-949
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics of virtual manipulatives apps that can be used to teach students struggling to learn mathematics. To achieve this goal, ten general characteristics of 23 virtual manipulatives apps were evaluated. The instructional, interface, and interactive design features of apps were also evaluated on five-point scale ratings of 18 items. In addition, SPSS frequency analysis and the correlation between each feature was analyzed. Frequently presented instructional contents among 23 virtual manipulatives apps were geometry, arithmetic operation, number concept and measurement. The frequently presented level of instructional contents was lower grade elementary school and kindergarten age. The frequently presented instructional type was the simulation. Regarding the design features, instructional design was rated as the highest (mean = 3.7); interactive design (mean = 3.6) and interface design (mean = 3.3) were also rated higher than neural. In addition, as the learning strategy was appropriately presented, it was evaluated that there was less screen linkage and content error.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.207-219
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• 2004

There have been studies reporting the increase in student confidence in mathematics when using technology. However, past studies indicating a positive correlation between technology and confidence in mathematics do not explain why they see this positive outcome. With increased availability and easy access to the Internet in schools and the development of free online virtual manipulatives, this research was interested in how the use of virtual manipulatives in mathematics can affect students confidence in their mathematical abilities. Our hypothesis was that the classes using virtual manipulatives which allows students to connecting dynamic visual image with abstract symbols will help students gain a deeper conceptual understanding of math concept thus increasing their confidence and ability in mathematics. The participants in this study were 46 fifth-grade students in three ability groups: one high, one middle and one low. During a two-week unit on fractions, students in three groups interacted with several virtual manipulative applets in a computer lab. Data sources in the project included a pre and posttest of students mathematics content knowledge, Confidence in Learning Mathematics Scale, field notes and student interviews, and classroom videotapes. Our aim was to find evidence for increased level of confidence in mathematics as students strengthened their understanding of fraction concepts. Results from the achievement score indicated an overall main effect showing significant improvement for all ability groups following the treatment and an increase in the confidence level from the preassessment of the Confidence in Learning Mathematics Scale in the middle and high ability groups. An interesting finding was that the confidence level for the low ability group students who had the highest confidence level in the beginning did not change much in the final confidence scale assessment. In the middle and high ability groups, the confidence level did increase according to the improvement of the contest posttest. Through interviews, students expressed how the virtual manipulatives assisted their understanding by verifying their answers as they worked and facilitated their ability to figure out math concept in their mind and visually.

• The Mathematical Education
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• v.61 no.4
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• pp.521-537
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• 2022

The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted, interrupted, and changed the way we normally prepare our teacher candidates in teacher preparation programs. In this paper, we, two mathematics teacher educators (MTEs), reflect our own experiences in appropriating, transforming, reconstructing, and modifying our pedagogies of teacher education in making a transition from face-to-face to online environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a collaborative self-study, we discussed issues, challenges, changes, opportunities, and innovations of teaching an elementary mathematics methods course in the online environment. Using a constant comparison method, we explored the following three themes: (1) using virtual manipulatives; (2) creating collaborative, interactive, and shared learning experiences for preservice teachers; and (3) making preservice teachers engaged in student thinking. These findings indicated that online teaching requires transformative knowledge for teacher educators. Transferring face-to-face to online is not a simple matter of putting the existing content to online; it should focus on pedagogical improvement in teaching mathematics rather than technology's sake or how it can be repurposed in a new online environment in a way that students' learning is optimized. The findings of this study provide implications for unpacking MTEs' technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK), creating collaborative learning experiences for preservice teachers, and designing a collaborative self-study between MTEs engaged in the community of professional learning.