Reasoning, Communication and Connections
Reasoning, Communication and Connections
Reasoning, Communication and Connections
1 Introduction
This yearbook of the Association of Mathematics Educators (AME) in
Singapore focuses on Reasoning, Communication and Connections in
Mathematics. Like two of our past yearbooks, Mathematical Problem
Solving (Kaur, Yeap, & Kapur, 2009) and Mathematical Applications and
Modelling (Kaur & Dindyal, 2010), the theme of this book is also shaped
by the framework of the school mathematics curriculum in Singapore,
shown in Figure 1. The primary goal of school mathematics in Singapore
is mathematical problem solving and amongst the processes specified
explicitly for nurturing problem solvers are reasoning, communication
and connections. In elaborating the framework, for both the primary and
secondary students, the Ministry of Education (MOE) (2006a, 2006b),
syllabus documents clarify that:
An Introduction
lists of skills and concepts they need to cover. Textbooks are often the
main source of such tasks (Doyle, 1983; Kaur, 2010). As noted by
Valverde, Bianchi, Wolfe, Schimdt, and Houang (2002) textbooks are
often good guides for content but lack emphasis on processes such as
problem solving or communication. In this book there are several
chapters that provide teachers with insights on how to modify textbook
type of mathematical tasks into ones that incorporate reasoning and
facilitate communication in the lesson. In chapter 3, Thompson presents
a variety of specific and general strategies that may be used to modify
typical textbook exercises to incorporate reasoning and communication
into the primary mathematics classroom. In chapter 4, Kaur introduces
primary teachers to four What strategies that may be used to create
tasks from textbook questions or student work so as to advance reasoning
and communication in the primary school mathematics classrooms. The
strategies are: What number makes sense?, Whats wrong?, What if?, and
Whats the question if you know the answer? In the chapter how one
primary 1 teacher enacted the strategy Whats the question if you know
the answer is also presented to demonstrate that even primary one
students can participate in lessons that call for reasoning and
communication provided they are given the opportunity to do so. In
chapter 5, Thompson draws on a framework from textbook research and
shows how typical algebra and statistics textbook type of exercises may
be modified to engage secondary school students in reasoning and
justification. The framework has six components of proof-related
reasoning, viz-a-viz finding counterexamples, investigating conjectures,
making conjectures, developing arguments, evaluating arguments, and
correcting mistakes in reasoning.
Lew and Jang, show in chapter 6 that project-based LOGO
programming activities may be used to improve reasoning,
communication and problem solving skills of high ability Year 6 students.
These activities appeared to provide students with opportunities to
activate and promote reasoning strategies such as analogy, generalisation,
progressive and critical thinking and debugging based on visualisation
and empirical inference. In chapter 7 Toh illustrates with appropriate
examples, from the Advanced Level Mathematics curriculum for Years
11 and 12, how reasoning, communication and connections may be
An Introduction
An Introduction
An Introduction
References
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