Using word problems in Malaysian mathematics education: looking beneath the surface

This paper reports on aspects of a project that investigated the influence of Chinese Malaysian students&rsquo; schooling in a tradition of abstract, technical mathematics and rote learning on ways that they responded to mathematical word problems. Data from an action research project are reported. Supposedly &ldquo;shallow&rdquo; and &ldquo; deep&rdquo; learning are shown to be interlinked, and assumptions frequently made by Western educators about modelling and practice are questioned.<br /