• School Mathematics
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.123-138
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• 2008

The objective of this paper is to reveal the cause of failure of New Math in the field of the SMSG area education from the didactical point of view. At first, we analyzed Euclid's (Elements), De Morgan's (Elements of arithmetic), and Legendre's (Elements of geometry and trigonometry) in order to identify characteristics of the area conception in the SMSG. And by analyzing the controversy between Wittenberg(1963) and Moise(1963), we found that the elementariness and the mental object of the area concept are the key of the success of SMSG's approach. As a result, we conclude that SMSG's approach became separated from the mathematical contents of the similarity concept, the idea of same-area, incommensurability and so on. In this account, we disclosed that New Math gave rise to the lack of elementariness and geometrical mental object, which was the fundamental cause of failure of New Math.

• Journal of Engineering Education Research
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.34-44
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• 2015

Mathematical, spatial, and verbal abilities are important for future engineers to succeed in the STEM disciplines. The purpose of the study is to assess engineering students' spatial abilities and analyse the relationship with mathematical achievement, verbal achievement, and gender. On the mental rotation tests, 65% of male students demonstrated a substantial level of spatial abilities. But only 30% of female students exhibited spatial skills at the same level as their male colleagues. The correlations between mathematical - spatial - verbal abilities are found to be negligible. When spatial visualization ability was plotted according to the mathematical achievement level, there was no difference in the mean spatial abilities score. But when mathematical achievement score was plotted according to the spatial abilities, there was a noticeable difference. Regression analysis confirmed that female students' mathematical achievement increased as spatial abilities improved. This phenomenon was not observed for male students. It's because male students' spatial ability already contributed to their mathematics achievement. So spatial ability can be regarded as one factor for the gender differences in mathematics achievement. The gender gap on spatial abilities and math achievement is large among high achieving students. For example, there was a 4.3 to 1 male - female ratio and 3.4 to 1 male - female ratio among students scoring 99th percentile in spatial visualization test and scholastic aptitude test-math.

• Journal of Elementary Mathematics Education in Korea
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.1-17
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• 2013

In this paper, firstly, 'value', 'vertices', 'height' are discussed, which are used in the multiple contexts. Then 'sketch', 'mental math', 'zero point oneth place/zero point zero oneth place/zero point zereo zero oneth place', 'number of place', 'natural number part/decimal part' are discussed, which are not used consistently. Finally, middle school mathematics terms 'distance', 'number line', 'the value of the expression' are discussed which are used in elementary school mathematics textbooks/workbooks. From these discussions, the following four suggestions are proposed as conclusions. First, as a mathematical term 'value' and 'distance' should be emphasized. As 'distance' is a middle school term, there is a need to consider the 'height' as 'the length of the line segment' instead of 'distance'. Second, 'number of place' which can be replaced with other suitable term, 'the value of the expression' including 'value of $20{\times}4$', 'natural number part/decimal part', 'vertex of pyramid/vertex of cone', 'mental math' should not be used. Third, there is a need to consider the use of 'mixed decimal' and 'proper decimal'. In addition, there is a need to expand the use of 'sketch'. Fourth, there is a need to consider the confirmation of 'number line' as an elementary school mathematics term. In addition, there is a need to consider to specify that 'decimal first place', 'decimal second place', 'decimal third place' can be used equivalently with 'zero point oneth place', 'zero point zero oneth place', 'zero point zereo zero oneth place' respectively.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.121-128
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to confirm the impact of noise on subject accomplishment as well as physical/mental load, and evaluates the effects of noise-masking and earplug. 15 college students participate in the test, and the comparison is performed by executing four projects according to conditional categories of noise environments; control condition, noise condition, earplug condition, and noise-masking condition. Noise in the field site of the H manufacturer was used as the noise source, the general job aptitude test which consist of linguistic ability, math ability, perception ability, reasoning ability was used as the task of this project. To estimate physical/mental load evaluation, we used the heart rate R-R interval, Criteria flicker fusion frequency(CFF) and measured NASA-TLX workload for subjective evaluation. As the research outcome, it is shown that there is a meaningful difference for the project task score, dropping rate of CFF, the heart rate, and NASA-TLX subjective evaluation score according to conditions of noise environment. Therefore, the impact of noise on capability of subject accomplishment as well as physical/mental load was confirmed along with the effects of using earplug and noise-masking.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.295-309
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• 1999

The primary purpose of this study is to investigate problems with the current mathematics textbook. According to a survey, the following were the findings: Textbook is only a tool-book for introducing mathematical facts. It is a unique book for all students possessing different level of mathematical ability. There is difficulty in teaming math using technological devices and in activating(mental and concrete) manipulative activities. There is difficulty in communicating while doing mathematics. There is lack of defined and developed layout of textbook, et. al. It can be however found that these problems can be solved to some degrees, when mathematics textbook is developed based on constructivism. Recently, in mathematics education, it has been gradually emphasized that constructivism can be powerful in teaching and learning mathematics. There are however some difficulties in developing mathematics textbooks to reflect constructivism, such as to fill the gap between the contents written in the national curriculum determined in advance and the contents which students construct psychologically or socially in mathematics class.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.1-20
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• 2013

The aim of this study was to develop a gifted educational program in math-gifted class in elementary school using recently developed 4D-frame. This study identified how this program impacted on spatial sense and mathematical creativity for mathematically gifted students. The investigation attempted to contribute to the developments for the gifted educational program. To achieve the aim, the study analysed the 5 and 6th graders' figure learning contents from a revised version of the 2007 national curriculum. According to this analysis, twelve learning sections were developed on the basis of 4D-frame in the math-gifted educational program. The results of the study is as follows. First, a learning program using 4D-frame for spatial sense from mathematically gifted elementary school students was statistically significant. A sub-factor of spatial visualization called mental rotation and sub-factors of spatial orientations such as sense of distance and sense of spatial perception were statistically significant. Second, the learning program that uses 4D-frame for mathematical creativity was statistically significant. The sub-factors of mathematical creativity such as fluency, flexibility and originality were all statistically significant. Third, the manipulation properties of 4D-frame helped to understand the characteristics of various solid figures. Through the math discussions in the class, participants' error correction was promoted. The advantage of 4D-frame including easier manipulation helped participants' originality for their own sculpture. In summary, this found that the learning program using 4D-frame attributed to improve the spatial sense and mathematical creativity for mathematically gifted students in elementary school. These results indicated that the writers' learning program will help to develop the programs for the gifted education program in the future.

• Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.197-213
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• 2005

There are not a few mathematical terms used as the undefined terms in school mathematics. The purpose of this study is to investigate critically the undefined mathematical terms in elementary school mathematics textbooks of Korea. As the result, the following suggestions are proposed. Firstly, It is not proper to use the terms which mathematics curriculum does not allow to use in elementary school math as the undefined terms in elementary school mathematics textbooks. Secondly, everyday-based undefined terms must be defined in elementary school mathematics textbook if their mathematical meanings are different from their everyday-based meanings. Thirdly, we need to consider the consistency when we use the undefined terms in elementary school mathematics. Fourthly, undefined terms should be define newly when the contexts in which they are used are changed or expanded. Finally, in elementary school mathematics textbooks, it is needed to define some purely mathematical undefined terms that there is no evidence which shows students grasp well their meaning.