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Young children's representations and strategies for subtraction
1School of Learning and Development, Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Australia.
The British Journal of Educational Psychology
|November 1, 1993
Summary
Children
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Educational Psychology
- Mathematics Education
Background:
- Subtraction strategies are crucial for mathematical development.
- Understanding children's cognitive processes in learning subtraction is essential for effective pedagogy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the representations and strategies children use for subtraction.
- To examine the influence of socio-economic status on subtraction strategy development.
- To compare children's chosen strategies with those taught by teachers.
Main Methods:
- Individual interviews and video recordings of 55 children (Years 1-3).
- Presentation of symbolic subtraction operations to elicit strategy use.
- Teacher interviews to identify introduced representations and strategies.
Main Results:
- A developmental sequence from concrete objects to mental calculations was observed.
- Written algorithms were minimally used despite being taught.
- Children's strategy use varied across socio-economic backgrounds.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive load may impede the adoption of taught procedures.
- Curriculum recommendations should consider children's information processing capacities.
- Further research is needed on effective subtraction strategy instruction.