Although the importance of engaging students both cognitively and affectively when they learn mathematics is now widely recognized, the place of beliefs in the teaching and learning of mathematics is not well researched. After a brief... more
Although the importance of engaging students both cognitively and affectively when they learn mathematics is now widely recognized, the place of beliefs in the teaching and learning of mathematics is not well researched. After a brief introduction in which some contextual issues are raised, the contents of the contributions that follow — each with a clear focus on beliefs in
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Gender differences in performance, particularly in the mathematics and sciences areas, have attracted much attention over the past three decades. The ®ve articles in this special issue share this focus. Their emphasis is on gifted... more
Gender differences in performance, particularly in the mathematics and sciences areas, have attracted much attention over the past three decades. The ®ve articles in this special issue share this focus. Their emphasis is on gifted students, particularly those of high school age. Collectively, the research described covers a wide geographic area: the United Kingdom (Freeman), Canada (Lupart, Cannon, and Telfer), Germany (Schober, Reimann, and Wagner, and Ziegler and Stoeger), and the United States of America (Kerr and Kurpius). Each of these can be described as a highly technological society. Thus voices from developing nations are missing. Two main themes run through the work reported: con ̄icting ®ndings with respect to gender differences in achievement in mathematics and related areas, with girls now often outnumbering boys among the highest performers but still often found to have less functional attitudes to themselves as learners, and promising intervention programs and activities. Joan FreemanÐin common with the authors of the other articles in this issueÐ begins her article with an overview of recent research on gender differences in achievement, particularly in the mathematics/sciences area and among highly able students. Country-speci®c gender differences in performance are explained in terms of differential cultural practices and expectations. Freeman draws on educational provisions in Britain to identify changes in societal expectations and in educational practices which seem to have had a positive impact on the performance of girls in particular. Statuary procedures to ensure gender equity in and beyond the classroom and changes in assessment practices are among the factors singled out. Despite the higher performance of girls compared with boys typically reported in Britain, Freeman argues ``that high-achieving girls in Britain are feeling some strain because of their successes'' and that ``men generally outperform women in their later careers''. Surprisingly, she also suggests that ``for boys, [while] good teaching appears to be a
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In Cross-Cultural Studies in Cognition and Mathematics David Laney describes the ambitious Indigenous Mathematics Project carried out in Papua New Guinea (P.N.G.) with the full support of the P.N.G. Department of Education and set up to... more
In Cross-Cultural Studies in Cognition and Mathematics David Laney describes the ambitious Indigenous Mathematics Project carried out in Papua New Guinea (P.N.G.) with the full support of the P.N.G. Department of Education and set up to examine the relationship between children's cultural background and their pattern of cognitive development, particularly with respect to category formation. Whether the acquisition of school arithmetic was influenced by these factors was also investigated, though less comprehensively. The book seems a ready example of Brislin's (1983) contention that “in the last four to five years cross-cultural studies have been recognized as central to theory development by large numbers of psychologists” (p. 364).
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Mathematics is widely regarded as a crucial component ofthe school curriculum. Indeed, for the greater part of their schooling, students spend at least some time each day doing mathematics. Although there is no consensus about the exact... more
Mathematics is widely regarded as a crucial component ofthe school curriculum. Indeed, for the greater part of their schooling, students spend at least some time each day doing mathematics. Although there is no consensus about the exact nature of the content to be studied, there is much overlap in the curriculum to be found in different countries. At the elementary level, arithmetic exercise or calculations abound. Other branches such as algebra. calculus, or geometry are typically not encountered till later years. Marked similarities in the way the curriculum is delivered in many classrooms have also been noted (see, e.g., Romberg & Carpenter, 1986).
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The field of educational assessment is rapidly changing. Calls for reform have been heard for some time, and they are now being heeded in unprecedented ways. One outcome is that we are suddenly undergoing a deluge of books and articles... more
The field of educational assessment is rapidly changing. Calls for reform have been heard for some time, and they are now being heeded in unprecedented ways. One outcome is that we are suddenly undergoing a deluge of books and articles about assessment in mathematic education, ranging in topics from broad impassioned tatements about the need for change, to specific hypotheses about how to change and what the anticipated outcomes might be, to actual implementations representing specific efforts to change, to sharp criticisms about some of the unexpected results of change. The current situation leaves us, as reviewers, in something of a quandary. On the one hand, there is certainly a need to keep abreast of important contribution to the literature, and we want to review a many of the new books as is feasible. On the other hand, it seems somewhat unfair to review books that attempt to deal with ongoing and urgent changes in educational assessment. becaue they are all too often outdated by the time they appear. All researchers are aware of the lag between the time a manuscript is written and the time it reaches its audience. Sometimes the lag is great, and sometime it is s mall. For rapidly changing fields—like educational assessment—a large lag is especially problematic because what seems new and revolutionary at the time of writing may no longer appear so new by the time a reader encounters it. Such is the case with some of the books we review here.
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This thesis was scanned from the print manuscript for digital preservation and is copyright the author. Researchers can access this thesis by asking their local university, institution or public library to make a request on their behalf.... more
This thesis was scanned from the print manuscript for digital preservation and is copyright the author. Researchers can access this thesis by asking their local university, institution or public library to make a request on their behalf. Monash staff and postgraduate students can use the link in the References field.
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The classroom practices of beginning teachers, it has been argued, tend to be conservative, instrumental, and different from those recommended by researchers, teacher educators, and curriculum developers. This issue was addressed in the... more
The classroom practices of beginning teachers, it has been argued, tend to be conservative, instrumental, and different from those recommended by researchers, teacher educators, and curriculum developers. This issue was addressed in the present study by a survey of 120 ...
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In earlier times, the stereotyping of mathematics as a male domain was identified as a factor contributing to females’ decisions not to persist with higher-level mathematics courses, and a weak positive relationship was typically found... more
In earlier times, the stereotyping of mathematics as a male domain was identified as a factor contributing to females’ decisions not to persist with higher-level mathematics courses, and a weak positive relationship was typically found between females’ achievement levels and rejection of this stereotype. Using a new instrument designed to measure the extent to which mathematics is stereotyped as a male, female and neutral domain, we explored the relationships between perceived achievement levels and the gender stereotyping of mathematics. We compared the results for males and females. Our findings confirm some previous results and challenge others.
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(T)he Australian colonies were among the earliest to emancipate women politically, to offer girls equal educational opportunities, and along with other pioneering societies of the American and Canadian West, and New Zealand, they were... more
(T)he Australian colonies were among the earliest to emancipate women politically, to offer girls equal educational opportunities, and along with other pioneering societies of the American and Canadian West, and New Zealand, they were seen as promoting female behaviour and personality which allowed assertiveness, friendliness and independence. (Grimshaw, 1982, p. 3)
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Using an innovative recruitment tool, the social network site Facebook, survey data were gathered from a sample of the general public in Australia and elsewhere in the world. Views on the gendering of mathematics, science, and ICT were... more
Using an innovative recruitment tool, the social network site Facebook, survey data were gathered from a sample of the general public in Australia and elsewhere in the world. Views on the gendering of mathematics, science, and ICT were garnered. In this paper we report the findings from ...
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Forgasz, Helen, Leder, Gilah and Lynch, Julianne 2001, The social context and women`s learning of mathematics, in Changing faces of mathematics : perspectives on gender, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Reston, Va.,... more
Forgasz, Helen, Leder, Gilah and Lynch, Julianne 2001, The social context and women`s learning of mathematics, in Changing faces of mathematics : perspectives on gender, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Reston, Va., pp.141-150. ... Jacobs, Judith E. Becker, ...
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Using an innovative recruitment tool, the social network site Facebook, survey data were gathered from a sample of the general public in Australia and elsewhere in the world. Views on the gendering of mathematics, science, and ICT were... more
Using an innovative recruitment tool, the social network site Facebook, survey data were gathered from a sample of the general public in Australia and elsewhere in the world. Views on the gendering of mathematics, science, and ICT were garnered. In this paper we report the findings from ...