• The Mathematical Education
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.247-270
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• 2013

The purpose of this research was to analyze the convergent approaches for creativity in elementary mathematics textbooks in Korean and the united States. Convergent approaches have emphasized since NCTM(2000) consistently includes 'connections' as an important factor in mathematics curriculum and KOFAC(Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science & Creativity) initiated the STEAM(Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) in mathematics and science education. For this research, two elementary mathematics textbooks were analyzed focused on their contexts and contents: Korean National Elementary Mathematics Textbooks and Navigations in Numbers, Data, and Space. In both textbooks, it was not easy to find so called the convergent approach in a real sense, but they use some contexts for connections between mathematical concepts and real world phenomena. For the enhancement of convergent approaches in mathematics education, we need to have a broader sense in the convergent approaches and develop various meaningful materials.

• School Mathematics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.663-690
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• 2017

The aim of this study is to look into the meaning and sub-factors of spatial orientation, compare and analyze mathematics curriculums and textbooks of several countries with respect to spatial orientation and offer suggestions to improve teaching spatial orientation in elementary school mathematics in Korea. In order to attain these purposes, this study examined the meaning and sub-factors of spatial orientation through the theoretical consideration regarding various studies on spatial sense. Based on such examination, this study compared and analyzed mathematics curriculums and textbooks used in South Korea, Singapore, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Finland, United States of America, and Germany with respect to contents of mathematics curriculum and textbooks in grades, sub-factors of spatial orientation, and contexts for spatial orientation. In the light of such theoretical consideration and analytical results, this study provided suggestions for improving teaching spatial orientation in elementary schools in Korea as follows: extending content of spatial orientation in mathematics curriculum, emphasizing spatial orientation across the several grades, especially in the upper grades, providing opportunities to learn the sub-factors of location, direction, coordinates, route, and distance variously, and utilizing various familiar and realistic contexts in the world around students.

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.137-173
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• 2021

Research and national standards, such as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in the United States, promote the development and implementation of K-12 interdisciplinary curricula integrating the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science (STEM+CS). However, little research has explored how teachers provide epistemic support in interdisciplinary contexts or the factors that inform teachers' epistemic support in STEM+CS activities. The goal of this paper is to articulate how interdisciplinary instruction complicates epistemic knowledge and resources needed for teachers' instructional decision-making. Toward these ends, this paper builds upon existing models of teachers' instructional decision-making in individual STEM+CS disciplines to highlight specific challenges and opportunities of interdisciplinary approaches on classroom epistemic supports. First, we offer considerations as to how teachers can provide epistemic support for students to engage in disciplinary practices across mathematics, science, engineering, and computer science. We then support these considerations using examples from our studies in elementary classrooms using integrated STEM+CS curriculum materials. We focus on an elementary school context, as elementary teachers necessarily integrate disciplines as part of their teaching practice when enacting NGSS-aligned curricula. Further, we argue that as STEM+CS interdisciplinary curricula in the form of NGSS-aligned, project-based units become more prevalent in elementary settings, careful attention and support needs to be given to help teachers not only engage their students in disciplinary practices across STEM+CS disciplines, but also to understand why and how these disciplinary practices should be used. Implications include recommendations for the design of professional learning experiences and curriculum materials.

• The Mathematical Education
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• v.57 no.2
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• pp.93-110
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• 2018

One of the biggest changes in the 2015 revised mathematics curriculum is shifting to the second year of middle school in Pythagorean theorem. In this study, the following subjects were studied. First, Pythagoras theorem analyzed the expected problems caused by the shift to the second year middle school. Secondly, we have researched the reconstruction method to solve these problems. The results of this study are as follows. First, there are many different ways to deal with Pythagorean theorem in many countries around the world. In most countries, it was dealt with in 7th grade, but Japan was dealing with 9th grade, and the United States was dealing with 7th, 8th and 9th grade. Second, we derived meaningful implications for the curriculum of Korea from various cases of various countries. The first implication is that the Pythagorean theorem is a content element that can be learned anywhere in the 7th, 8th, and 9th grade. Second, there is one prerequisite before learning Pythagorean theorem, which is learning about the square root. Third, the square roots must be learned before learning Pythagorean theorem. Optimal positions are to be placed in the eighth grade 'rational and cyclic minority' unit. Third, Pythagorean theorem itself is important, but its use is more important. The achievement criteria for the use of Pythagorean theorem should not be erased. In the 9th grade 'Numbers and Calculations' unit, after learning arithmetic calculations including square roots, we propose to reconstruct the square root and the utilization subfields of Pythagorean theorem.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.403-420
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• 2016

Some of the critical changes in the revised 2015 Korean Mathematics curriculum were that direct proportion and inverse proportion were moved from elementary school to middle school and that supplementary content related to correlation was included. These decisions were based on comparative studies of international curriculum. Therefore in this study, we selected countries for comparison; United States, England, France, Finland, Australia, Japan, Singapore, China and Taiwan. We looked into the timing and scope for direct/inverse proportion and correlation in curricula of these countries. Along with this, we established four criteria; vertical sequence, horizontal sequence, external connection, and internal connection for an analysis framework. Then we compared and analysed the direct/inverse proportion and correlation in each curriculum. As a result, in most of these curricula, the direct/inverse proportions are introduced at middle school or are introduced at elementary school and then developed further at middle school. Most of curriculums on direct/inverse proportion and correlation match the four criteria. Correlation is introduced in high school mathematics in all counties except Finland and it is dealt in diverse context introducing related concepts, for example, correlation coefficient, regression straight line, and least square. We suggested that it is necessary to refer these international trends for the next revision of curriculum.

• School Mathematics
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.515-530
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• 2015

The concepts of sample and sampling are central to make a statistically correct decision, so we need to be emphasized their importance in the statistics education. Nevertheless, there were not enough studies which discuss how to teach the concepts of sample and sampling. In this study, teaching sample and sampling is addressed by foreign curricula and cases of instruction in order to obtain suggestions for teaching sample and sampling. In particular, the curricular of Australia, New Zealand, England and the United States are analyzed, considering the sample representativeness and the sampling variability; the two elements in the concept of sample. Also foreign textbooks and cases of instruction when it comes to teach sample are analyzed. The results say that with respect to teach sample can be divided into four suggestions: first, sample was taught in the process of statistical inquiry such as data collection, analysis, and results. Second, sample was introduced earlier than Korea curriculum. Third, when it comes to teach sample, sample variability, as well as sample representativeness was considered. Fourth, technological tools were used to enhance understanding sample.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.557-580
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• 2012

Common Core State Standards for Mathematics(CCSSM) is a blueprint for school mathematics in 2010s of the United States. CCSSM can be divided into two major parts, the standards for mathematical content and the standards for mathematical practice. This study focused on the latter. Mathematical practice comes from the mathematical process in 'Principles and standards for school mathematics(NCTM, 2000)' as well as the mathematical proficiency in 'Adding it up(NRC, 2001)'. It is composed of eight standards which mathematically proficient students are expected to do. From Korean perspective, it can also be comparable with the mathematical process which contains mathematical problem solving, mathematical reasoning, and mathematical communication and was provided by the 2009 revised national curriculum for mathematics in Korea. However, few focused the standards for mathematical practice among the studies related to CCSSM in Korea. Moreover, there is a study that even ignores the existence of the standards for mathematical practice itself. This study aims to understand the standards for mathematical practice through analysing the document of CCSSM and its successive materials for implementing the CCSSM. This understanding will help effective implementation of the mathematical process in Korea.

• Journal of Elementary Mathematics Education in Korea
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.263-289
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• 2017

New mathematics textbooks for elementary school students are under development according to the 2015 national revised curriculum. Not only contents but also framework of textbooks may be interesting to the mathematics educators and researchers. Considering the high dependency on textbooks in elementary classrooms, the influence of the framework of textbooks in mathematics learning cannot be overlooked. The unit and lesson frameworks of the textbook are important because they are directly related to the quality of mathematic lessons, especially when teachers make a lesson plan based on the unit and lesson frameworks of the textbook. This study is to analyse the unit and lesson frameworks of elementary school mathematics textbooks and to find out elementary school teachers' preference about its analysed key points. For longitudinal analysis, we selected 3rd-grade mathematics textbooks of 5th, 6th, 7th, the 2007, and the 2009 national revised curriculums. For horizontal analysis, we selected 3rd-grade mathematics textbooks of Korea, Japan, United States and Finland. We compared unit and lesson frameworks of various textbooks, and abstracted key elements of the textbook frameworks, and constructed survey questions. Looking at results from survey questions based on analysed key points, we were able to grasp the teachers' preference for unit and lesson frameworks for mathematics textbook. Based on the results of this study, some implications for the development of framework for new mathematics textbooks are suggested.

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.139-162
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• 1997

본 연구는 학교 교육과정 가운데 특히 수학과 교육과정에 초점을 맞추고, 미국과 한국을 중심으로 수학과 교육과정의 변화를 초래한 근본적인 원인을 분석하고, 두 나라의 중학교 수학과 교육과정의 체제와 내용을 비교해 보고자 시도하였다. 이러한 비교는 교육과정의 공통성과 차이성을 찾아서 한국 교육과정의 사회적 및 개인적 적합성을 평가하고, 이후 한국의 교육과정 개선을 위한 방안들을 모색하기 위한 것이다. 이미 미국의 경우 1980 년대 들어 서면서 정보화 사회에 적응할 수 있는 수학과 교육과정의 개발 작업에 노력해 왔으며, 한국도 1980 년대 후반부터 제 6 차 교육과정의 개발을 위한 연구를 시작하였다. 그 결과, 미국은 NCTM (미국 수학교사협회)을 중심으로 새로운 수학교육의 표준을 설정하고, 향후 수학교육이 지향할 방향과 전략을 설정한 바 있다. 또한 한국은 제 6 차 교육과정 개정 작업을 통하여 1992 년에 새로운 교육과정을 고시하였다. 물론 양국의 수학과 교육과정을 비교 분석하기 위해서는 그 범위와 대상을 폭 넓게 정할 수도 있겠지만, 본 연구에서는 분석의 대상을 최근 미국의 수학과 교육과정의 근간을 이루고 있는 NCTM 의 일련의 교육 표준화 관련 연구들과 한국의 제 6 차 교육과정에 나타난 수학과 교육과정으로 제한하였다. 본 연구에서는 양국의 수학교육을 이해하기 위하여 1) 양국의 수학과 교육과정에 나타난 수학교육의 일반적 성격, 기본 방향 교육 목표를 비교 분석하였고, 2) 양국의 중학교 수학 교육과정에 나타난 교육 내용을 비교해 보았다. 이를 위해서, 본 연구는 NCTM 의 교육과정 안에 명시된 중학교 과정의 수학과 교육 목표 및 내용을 준거로 하여 한국 교육과정의 관련 내용을 분석하고 비교학적으로 해석하는 방식을 취하였다. 물론 한 국가의 교육과정 체제를 목표 및 내용 요소의 비교만으로 파악할 수 없다고 본다. 향후 미국과 한국의 교육과정을 이해하기 위한 연구들은 내용의 조직, 방법, 평가, 그리고 운영계획 등에 관한 분석으로 확대되어 시도되어야 할 것으로 본다.