A case study of effective practice in mathematics teaching and learning informed by Valsiner’s zone theory

The characteristics that typify an effective teacher of mathematics and the environments that support effective teaching practices have been a long-term focus of educational research. In this article we report on an aspect of a larger study that investigated ‘best practice’ in mathematics teaching and learning across all Australian states and territories. A case study from one Australian state was developed from data collected via classroom observations and semi-structured interviews with school leaders and teachers and analysed using Valsiner’s zone theory. A finding of the study is that ‘successful’ practice is strongly tied to school context and the cultural practices that have been developed by school leaders and teachers to optimise student learning opportunities. We illustrate such an alignment of school culture and practice through a vignette based on a case of one ‘successful’ school

Is it time to start reconsidering the teaching of time?

How students are taught about the difficult concept of time needs to be carefully considered, in terms of both the key aspects involved as well as the sequencing. Examples of concrete activities to support the teaching of time are included

Mathematics classrooms - why are some fireworks and others just sparklers?

The name of this paper and the presentation which accompanies it is Mathematics classrooms - why are some fireworks and others just sparklers? Why is it that some classrooms are vibrant places of lively debate, reasoning and mathematical inquiry and others are places of anxiety and disengagment? The following article will address research that underpins some of the affective elements that need to be considered in order to tackle the content of mathematics in a way that makes students feel engaged in the mathematics learning process

A comparison and contradistinction of the methods of selecting educational computer software employed in W.A. primary schools

This thesis reviews the methods and criteria that Western Australian school teachers and District Consultants of computers use in the selection of Educational computer software. Questionnaires were used to survey these two groups ( N=301, teachers and N=20 District Consultants) on aspects such as: how they select software; what criteria they employ in selecting software; how confident they feel about software selection; their level of training in software selection; and the skills and resources they have in software selection. This data was then analysed through the application of computer based analysis programs. From the data collected some questions arose about the methods employed in software selection and whether they were conducive to the selection of good quality software. The current status of the Education Department\u27s ( formerly called the Ministry of Education ) preferred document on software selection \u27Software Focus\u27 was also bought into focus as a result of the data collected in this study. The questions raised in this study relate to several important issues, not least of all, how can Western Australian primary school teachers be helped in making careful and considered selections of software for their classroom? The findings of the research, provided useful information about the attitudes, understandings, skills and needs of the teachers in W.A. primary schools with regards to the selection of educational software. It indicated a need for further training in software selection; a need for increased awareness of the Education Department document ‘Software Focus’ and a need to bring to the attention of teachers the importance of the proper selection of software for increased efficiency. It also indicated that \u27Software Focus\u27 would need to be reviewed and updated to be the effective resource for which it was designed. This research also provided useful information about the similarities and differences which exist between W.A primary school teachers and District Consultants with regards to software selection. This research indicated that District Consultants and teachers differ significantly in their methods of selection of software and the factors which influence that selection. Other significant indications are that District Consultant are: more likely to assess software before they use it; feel better trained in software selection; have more tertiary training in software selection; use \u27Software Focus\u27 more frequently in the selection of software, and believe teachers to be better trained and more competent in software selection than teachers themselves do

Investigating children\u27s multiplicative thinking: implications for teaching

Multiplicative thinking is a \u27big idea\u27 of mathematics that underpins much of the mathematics learned beyond the early primary school years. This article reports on a recent study that utilised an interview tool and a written quiz to gather data about children\u27s multiplicative thinking. Our research has so far revealed that many primary aged children have a procedural view of multiplicative thinking which we believe inhibits their progress. There are two aspects to this article. First, we present some aspects of the interview tool and written quiz, along with some of findings, and we consider the implications of those findings. Second, we present a key teaching idea and an associated task that has been developed from our research. The main purpose of the article is to promote the development of conceptual understanding of the multiplicative situation as opposed to the teaching of procedures. In doing so, we encourage the explicit teaching of the many connections within the multiplicative situation and between it and other \u27big ideas\u27 such as proportional reasoning and algebraic thinking

Investigating Children’s Multiplicative Thinking: Implications for Teaching

Multiplicative thinking is a ‘big idea’ of mathematics that underpins much of the mathematics learned beyond the early primary school years. This article reports on a recent study that utilised an interview tool and a written quiz to gather data about children’s multiplicative thinking. Our research has so far revealed that many primary aged children have a procedural view of multiplicative thinking which we believe inhibits their progress. There are two aspects to this article. First, we present some aspects of the interview tool and written quiz, along with some of findings, and we consider the implications of those findings. Second, we present a key teaching idea and an associated task that has been developed from our research. The main purpose of the article is to promote the development of conceptual understanding of the multiplicative situation as opposed to the teaching of procedures. In doing so, we encourage the explicit teaching of the many connections within the multiplicative situation and between it and other ‘big ideas’ such as proportional reasoning and algebraic thinking

Multiplicative thinking: Much more than knowing multiplication facts and procedures

Using examples from a current Year 6 research project, this article highlights the importance of a combination of conceptual understanding and procedural fluency in developing multiplicative thinkers

Where we were…where we are heading: One multiplicative journey

A journey into multiplicative thinking by three teachers in a primary school is reported. A description of how the teachers learned to identify gaps in student knowledge is described along with how the teachers assisted students to connect multiplicative ideas in ways that make sense

Captain Zero . . . hero or villain?

Our current research into children\u27s multiplicative thinking has shown that children have the capacity to think multiplicatively and that some aspects of multiplicative thinking are more thoroughly understood than others. We look at a data set obtained over three classes in the same year level and explore the considerable variation in responses to several key questions on a multiplicative thinking quiz. The questions relate to the \u27times bigger\u27 notion in comparing numbers, the ability to use standard place value partitioning when operating, the ability to articulate what happens when numbers are multiplied and divided by powers of ten, and the role of zero. It could reasonably be implied that the variation in understanding across the three classes may be due to pedagogical emphases

Inhibition of non-haem iron absorption in man by polyphenolic-containing beverages

The effects of different polyphenol-containing beverages on Fe absorption from a bread meal were estimated in adult human subjects from the erythrocyte incorporation of radio-Fe. The test beverages contained different polyphenol structures and were rich in either phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid in coffee), monomeric flavonoids (herb teas, camomile (Matricaria recutita L.)), vervain (Verbena officinalis L.), lime flower (Tilia cordata Mill.), pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium L.) and peppermint (Mentha piperita L.), or complex polyphenol polymerization products (black tea and cocoa). All beverages were potent inhibitors of Fe absorption and reduced absorption in a dose-dependent fashion depending on the content of total polyphenols. Compared with a water control meal, beverages containing 20-50 mg total polyphenols/serving reduced Fe absorption from the bread meal by 50-70 %, whereas beverages containing 100-400 mg total polyphenols/serving reduced Fe absorption by 60-90 %. Inhibition by black tea was 79-94 %, peppermint tea 84 %, pennyroyal 73 %, cocoa 71 %, vervain 59 %, lime flower 52 % and camomile 47 %. At an identical concentration of total polyphenols, black tea was more inhibitory than cocoa, and more inhibitory than herb teas camomile, vervain, lime flower and pennyroyal, but was of equal inhibition to peppermint tea. Adding milk to coffee and tea had little or no influence on their inhibitory nature. Our findings demonstrate that herb teas, as well as black tea, coffee and cocoa can be potent inhibitors of Fe absorption. This property should be considered when giving dietary advice in relation to Fe nutritio