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Structuring mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning: comparing lower secondary school practices in China, Japan and the UK

Structuring mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning: comparing lower secondary school practices in China, Japan and the UK
Structuring mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning: comparing lower secondary school practices in China, Japan and the UK
Achievement in mathematics continues to be a crucial factor in the success of school systems around the world. As a result, this area of the curriculum has been the subject of considerable international comparative research, mostly focussed on pupil achievement but also examining teaching methods, curricula, and so on. In all this, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the central role of teachers, and how they structure their lessons, has emerged as a key factor in pupil learning. A number of projects have examined the structure of mathematics lessons, either to typify individual lessons in specified countries, or as an attempt to describe the variety of lesson structures used by particular teachers in particular countries over a sequence of lessons. To date there has been little comparative work specifically on how teachers structure mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning despite the issue of how to improve geometry teaching being of considerable international concern. This paper reports early data from a larger comparative study that includes the analysis of classroom teaching materials. This paper compares suggestions about how teachers might structure geometry lessons in lower secondary school in three countries, China, Japan, and the UK (specifically England), chosen because they represent some interesting similarities and contrasts. The analysis focuses on the background to the suggestions available to teachers, in particular where approaches are similar and where they diverge. What the implications might be for student achievement in geometry in the three countries is identified as an area for future research.
pedagogy, curriculum, teaching, learning, intuition, geometry, intuitive, drawing, measurement, imagining, manipulating, figures, mathematics, England, UK, China, Chinese, Shanghai, Japan, geometric, geometrical, textbook, deductive reasoning, proof, Japanese, school, national curriculum, lesson, planning, structure
Jones, Keith
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Fujita, Taro
8a05b8fc-a1ce-4a7b-9399-3fb00639a3cc
Ding, Liping
e04dabec-984e-4644-b838-16fba10454d2
Jones, Keith
ea790452-883e-419b-87c1-cffad17f868f
Fujita, Taro
8a05b8fc-a1ce-4a7b-9399-3fb00639a3cc
Ding, Liping
e04dabec-984e-4644-b838-16fba10454d2

Jones, Keith, Fujita, Taro and Ding, Liping (2004) Structuring mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning: comparing lower secondary school practices in China, Japan and the UK. British Educational Research Association annual conference 2004 (BERA2004), Manchester, United Kingdom. 15 - 18 Sep 2004. 22 pp .

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Achievement in mathematics continues to be a crucial factor in the success of school systems around the world. As a result, this area of the curriculum has been the subject of considerable international comparative research, mostly focussed on pupil achievement but also examining teaching methods, curricula, and so on. In all this, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the central role of teachers, and how they structure their lessons, has emerged as a key factor in pupil learning. A number of projects have examined the structure of mathematics lessons, either to typify individual lessons in specified countries, or as an attempt to describe the variety of lesson structures used by particular teachers in particular countries over a sequence of lessons. To date there has been little comparative work specifically on how teachers structure mathematics lessons to develop geometrical reasoning despite the issue of how to improve geometry teaching being of considerable international concern. This paper reports early data from a larger comparative study that includes the analysis of classroom teaching materials. This paper compares suggestions about how teachers might structure geometry lessons in lower secondary school in three countries, China, Japan, and the UK (specifically England), chosen because they represent some interesting similarities and contrasts. The analysis focuses on the background to the suggestions available to teachers, in particular where approaches are similar and where they diverge. What the implications might be for student achievement in geometry in the three countries is identified as an area for future research.

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More information

Published date: 2004
Venue - Dates: British Educational Research Association annual conference 2004 (BERA2004), Manchester, United Kingdom, 2004-09-15 - 2004-09-18
Keywords: pedagogy, curriculum, teaching, learning, intuition, geometry, intuitive, drawing, measurement, imagining, manipulating, figures, mathematics, England, UK, China, Chinese, Shanghai, Japan, geometric, geometrical, textbook, deductive reasoning, proof, Japanese, school, national curriculum, lesson, planning, structure
Organisations: Mathematics, Science & Health Education

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 41291
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/41291
PURE UUID: cbf1e4a1-6c9c-4ea6-bb1c-523c581e5047
ORCID for Keith Jones: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-3677-8802

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 15 Aug 2006
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 08:27

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Contributors

Author: Keith Jones ORCID iD
Author: Taro Fujita
Author: Liping Ding

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