• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.1-22
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• 2000

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using graphing calculators on students' understanding of the linear and quadratic function concepts. The populators of this study are tenth graders at high school in Seoul, one class for the treatment group and another class for the comparison group, and experiment period is 14 weeks including two weeks for school regular exams.Function tests used in the study was proposed which described a conceptual knowledge of functions in terms of the following components: a) Conceptual understanding, b) Interpreting a function in terms of a verbal experission, c) Translating between different representations of functions, and d) Mathematical modeling a real-world situation using functions. Even though the group test means of the individual components of conceptual understanding, interpreting, translating, mathematical modeling did not differ significantly, there is evidence that the two groups differed in their performance on conceptual understanding. It was shown that students learned algebra using graphing calculators view graphs more globally. The attitude survey assessed students' attitudes and perceptions about the value of mathematics, the usefulness of graphs in mathematics, mathematical confidence, mathematics anxiety, and their feelings about calculators. The overall t-test was not statistically significant, but the students in the treatment group showed significantly different levels of anxiety toward mathematics.

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.9 no.1 s.21
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• pp.69-96
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• 2005

Motivation for learning is important for positive learning outcomes as well as for measured achievement levels. When students come to our classes, they bring with them learning histories in which we as individual teachers, most likely, did not have an input. Our students do not only bring with them different levels of prerequisite leanings but also different levels of affect for what they will be learning. If we leave their final learning at the mercy of these entry characteristics, a test given the first day before the course will have almost isomorphic results with their achievement levels on the last day. The ones who had 'it' on the first day will be the ones who in the future will also have 'it', not too different from what the present situation is all over the world. These circumstances will tend to be the case ad infinitum, unless of course, we want to change the situation. This research clearly shows that effective instructional methodologies coupled with cooperative peer interactions not only have an impact on achievement but also on positive attitudes toward one's learning.

• Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.59-67
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• 2000

This study has been done to help teach mathematics on the spot of education by providing the history of mathematics and illustrations concerning mathematics, which were rearranged for the level of the second grade students in highschool and intented to interest students in mathematics classes. The contents of teaching, according to each unit (Matrix, Sequence, Limit, Differentiation, Integration, Probability, Statistics) include the life of the representative mathematician, the historical background centered on episodes, questions linked with reality, questions making sensations in history and something for maxim in mathematics. If such contents are properly used, they are expected to be able to stimulate students' curiosity, and to be effective in improving students' learning ability in mathematics by causing them to show their active attitudes toward learning mathematics.

• Journal for History of Mathematics
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.115-132
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• 2020

Social awareness of mathematics and academic attitudes toward the value of mathematics education has kept changing according to the intellectual, political and religious contexts. In this article, we examine how mathematics was defined and recognized in liberal arts education of the Roman Empire and early medieval Western Europe. This study analyzes how mathematics was described in encyclopedic works written in the Roman era after the mid-second century BC and in the Western European monasteries and cathedral schools after the fifth century. Ancient Greek mathematics took a clear place in liberal arts education through encyclopedia writings and prepared a mathematics curriculum for medieval universities. I hope this study will contribute to understanding the origin and context of the mathematics curriculum of medieval universities.

• Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.243-260
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• 2009

Many students have difficulty studying mathematics because of its unique characteristics and the numbers of underachievers in mathematics are increasing, not decreasing, even though great teaching-learning methods have been provided. The purpose of this research is to examine if instruction using mind-map in mathematical studies has positive effects on achievement and attitudes of underachievers in mathematics. For this, mathematics learning ability test before instruction, survey of attitudes toward mathematics before and after instruction and mathematics learning ability test before and after instruction were performed for 32 underachievers in two classes of first grade in C high school in South Chung cheong Province. The positive effects of instruction using mind-map in mathematical studies on academic achievements and attitudes of underachievers were expected, but results indicate that there is no significant effect. However, results indicate that the use of mind-map in mathematics instruction has positive effects partially on the changes of learning attitudes. Therefore, the characteristics of underachievers in mathematics should be understood first, mind-map according to them should be applied and students should have time to properly perceive and draw mind-map skillfully. In teachers' professional knowledge of mind-map and consideration for students, when follow-up researches and systematic instruction proceed together for a long period time, the desired results can be realized.

• Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.211-230
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using the play with multiplication activities based on Skemp's theory for mathematics achievements and attitudes toward mathematics of elementary school students. For this study, we rearranged Skemp's play activities according to our curriculum in the area of multiplication and applied them to the 2nd grade classes of an elementary school. The plays with multiplication activities were applied to the experimental group while traditional teaching method was used with the current mathematics textbook for the comparative group. We obtained the following conclusions: First, in terms of mathematics achievement, the experimental group who used the plays with multiplication activities based on Skemp's theory didn't show significant difference with the comparative group. Second, it proved that the plays with multiplication activities based on Skemp's theory was more effective for lower level of students than the higher level of students. Third, the plays with multiplication activities based on Skemp's theory have positive effects on improving students' attitudes toward mathematics. We need to use the plays with multiplication activities based on Skemp's theory in the classrooms and find problems with the applying the activities. In addition, we need to develop a more various activities based on Skemp's theory for a better teaching.

• School Mathematics
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.215-231
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• 2001

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of the manipulatives in instruction of mathematics to those who have learning disabilities. Two middle school students who revealed very low achievements in the previous mathematics tests were involved in this study. Unit Cubes were used as the manipulatives, and the researchers utilized this manipulatives to teach the number bases. After a series of instructions utilizing the Unit Cubes, the subjects were interviewed with semi-structured form. In general, the effect of using the manipulatives were positive. Both subjects could understand much better with the Unit Cubes, and revealed affirmative results such as their positive attitudes toward mathematics.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.251-260
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• 1997

The instructional influences of cooperative learning strategies, which emphasize mutual interdependency of learners, group goal, and individual accountability, upon students' achievement, the attitude toward science instruction and the perception of learning environment were investigated. Before instruction, the prior knowledge test about atoms and molecules, the test of attitudes toward science instruction, and the perception questionnaire of learning environment were administered, and the grade in the previous mathematics course was obtained. These scores were used as covariates. Mid-term examination score was used as blocking variable. For instruction, three different strategies-traditional individual learning, small group learning, and cooperative learning-were used and teaching materials for the units of mole and stoichiometry were also prepared. After instruction, the researcher-made achievement test, the test of attitudes toward science instruction, and the perception questionnaire of learning environment were administered. The perception questionnaire of group activities was also administered to the two treatment groups. In the quantitative subtest, the scores of cooperative learning group and small group learning group were significantly higher than those of traditional individual learning group. However, the cooperative learning group's scores in the achievement test and the qualitative subtest were significantly higher than those of small group learning group and traditional individual learning group. The students in the cooperative learning group were found to have the most positive perception of learning environment but to have similar attitudes toward science instruction. No interaction between the treatment and the level of the previous achievement was found in any of the analyses. In the perception questionnaire of group activities, students in both small group learning group and cooperative learning group exhibited positive perception of group activities. However, students in the cooperative learning group tended to think that their activities were related with their group's success. Educational implications are discussed.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.484-499
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• 2015

This study explores the impact of a STEM integration teacher professional development program focusing on teachers' perception of engineering and their attitudes toward integrating engineering into teaching. A total of sixty-eight teachers from ten schools participated in the program for five days. Data are collected from three main sources including (1) pre and post concept maps probing teachers' perceptions about the engineering discipline, (2) a pre and post survey measuring teachers' self-efficacy of teaching science/mathematics within the engineering context, and (3) engineering integrated science and (or) mathematics lesson plans and teaching reflections. This study utilizes both qualitative and quantitative research methods depending on the data we have collected. The results show that both science and math teachers thought that integrating engineering into teaching provided valuable outcomes, i.e., promoting students' learning about engineering and improving their interest in science or math through real-world problem solving exercises. Participants also felt more comfortable about integrating engineering in their teaching after the program. The results also imply that the teachers' understandings of engineering become more concrete after the program. This study also provides an overview of the challenges and advantages of teaching engineering in K-12 science and mathematics classrooms.

• Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.187-201
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• 2015

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of using process-based writing poems in the elementary mathematics classrooms. For this study, we chose 128 elementary school students to examine their mathematical achievements and attitude towards mathematics when using process-centered writing poems in the elementary mathematics classrooms. Process-based mathematics and writing programs developed mainly on the geometry units were composed of four levels, idea generation, idea selection, use and idea organization grouped into similar sections in order to separate into two sections. The results of the practice of this study's problem can be summarized as follows. First, the process-based mathematics and writing activity of geometry had a positive impact on academic achievement in mathematics. Although there was not a significant difference in the fourth and fifth grades, significant differences in the fifth and sixth grade were found. Second, in regards to attitudes in mathematics, process-based mathematics and writing activities had a positive impact. In particular, the improvement of mathematical attitudes was evident in all grades. It confirmed the effective facilitation of interest and enjoyment towards learning mathematics by 4th, 5th and 6th graders who had undertaken these mathematics classes.