Student Misconceptions and Errors in Physics and Mathematics


Book Description

This open access report explores the nature and extent of students’ misconceptions and misunderstandings related to core concepts in physics and mathematics and physics across grades four, eight and 12. Twenty years of data from the IEA’s Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and TIMSS Advanced assessments are analyzed, specifically for five countries (Italy, Norway, Russian Federation, Slovenia, and the United States) who participated in all or almost all TIMSS and TIMSS Advanced assessments between 1995 and 2015. The report focuses on students’ understandings related to gravitational force in physics and linear equations in mathematics. It identifies some specific misconceptions, errors, and misunderstandings demonstrated by the TIMSS Advanced grade 12 students for these core concepts, and shows how these can be traced back to poor foundational development of these concepts in earlier grades. Patterns in misconceptions and misunderstandings are reported by grade, country, and gender. In addition, specific misconceptions and misunderstandings are tracked over time, using trend items administered in multiple assessment cycles. The study and associated methodology may enable education systems to help identify specific needs in the curriculum, improve inform instruction across grades and also raise possibilities for future TIMSS assessment design and reporting that may provide more diagnostic outcomes.




Motivational Profiles in TIMSS Mathematics


Book Description

This open access book presents a person-centered exploration of student profiles, using variables related to motivation to do school mathematics derived from the IEA’s Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data. Statistical cluster analysis is used to identify groups of students with similar motivational profiles, across grades and over time, for multiple participating countries. While motivational variables systematically relate to school outcomes, linear relationships can obscure the diverse makeup of student subgroups, each with varying combinations of motivation, emotions, and attitudes. In this book, a person-centered analysis of distinct and meaningful motivational profiles and their differences on sociodemographic variables and mathematics performance broadens understanding about the role that motivation characteristics play in learning and achievement in mathematics. Exploiting the richness of IEA’s TIMSS data from many countries, extracted clusters reveal consistent, as well as certain nuanced patterns that are systematically linked to sociodemographic and achievement measures. Student clusters with inconsistent motivational profiles were found in all countries; mathematics self-confidence then emerged as the variable more closely associated with average achievement. The findings demonstrate that teachers, researchers, and policymakers need to take into account differential student profiles, prioritizing techniques that target skill and competence in mathematics, in educational efforts to develop student motivation.




Teacher Quality, Instructional Quality and Student Outcomes


Book Description

This volume offers insights from modeling relations between teacher quality, instructional quality and student outcomes in mathematics across countries. The relations explored take the educational context, such as school climate, into account. The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement’s Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is the only international large-scale study possessing a design framework that enables investigation of relations between teachers, their teaching, and student outcomes in mathematics. TIMSS provides both student achievement data and contextual background data from schools, teachers, students and parents, for over 60 countries. This book makes a major contribution to the field of educational effectiveness, especially teaching effectiveness, where cross-cultural comparisons are scarce. For readers interested in teacher quality, instructional quality, and student achievement and motivation in mathematics, the comparisons across cultures, grades, and time are insightful and thought-provoking. For readers interested in methodology, the advanced analytical methods, combined with application of methods new to educational research, illustrate interesting novel directions in methodology and the secondary analysis of international large-scale assessment (ILSA).




International Comparative Studies in Mathematics


Book Description

It argues that the main purpose of educational research is to improve student learning, and that international comparative studies are no exception.




Cracking the code


Book Description

This report aims to 'crack the code' by deciphering the factors that hinder and facilitate girls' and women's participation, achievement and continuation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and, in particular, what the education sector can do to promote girls' and women's interest in and engagement with STEM education and ultimately STEM careers.




Contexts for Learning Mathematics


Book Description

Contexts for Learning consists of: Investigations and Resource Guides - workshop structure involves students in inquiring, investigating, discussing, and constructing mathematical solutions and strategies - investigations encourage emergent learning and highlight the developmental landmarks in mathematical thinking - strings of related problems develop students' deep number sense and expand their strategies for mental arithmetic Read-Aloud Books and Posters - create rich, imaginable contexts--realistic and fictional--for mathematics investigations - are carefully crafted to support the development of the big ideas, strategies, and models - encourage children to explore and generate patterns, generalize, and develop the ability to mathematize their worlds Resources for Contexts for Learning CD-ROM - author videos describe the series' philosophy and organization - video overviews show classroom footage of a math workshop, including minilessons, investigations, and a math congress - print resources include research base, posters, and templates




Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on Mathematical Education


Book Description

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. The book presents the Proceedings of the 13th International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME-13) and is based on the presentations given at the 13th International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME-13). ICME-13 took place from 24th- 31st July 2016 at the University of Hamburg in Hamburg (Germany). The congress was hosted by the Society of Didactics of Mathematics (Gesellschaft für Didaktik der Mathematik - GDM) and took place under the auspices of the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI). ICME-13 brought together about 3.500 mathematics educators from 105 countries, additionally 250 teachers from German speaking countries met for specific activities. Directly before the congress activities were offered for 450 Early Career Researchers. The proceedings give a comprehensive overview on the current state-of-the-art of the discussions on mathematics education and display the breadth and deepness of current research on mathematical teaching-and-learning processes. The book introduces the major activities of ICME-13, namely articles from the four plenary lecturers and two plenary panels, articles from the five ICMI awardees, reports from six national presentations, three reports from the thematic afternoon devoted to specific features of ICME-13. Furthermore, the proceedings contain descriptions of the 54 Topic Study Groups, which formed the heart of the congress and reports from 29 Discussion Groups and 31 Workshops. The additional important activities of ICME-13, namely papers from the invited lecturers, will be presented in the second volume of the proceedings.