Page 471 - Istenič Andreja, Gačnik Mateja, Horvat Barbara, Kukanja Gabrijelčič Mojca, Kiswarday Vanja Riccarda, Lebeničnik Maja, Mezgec Maja, Volk Marina. Ur. 2023. Vzgoja in izobraževanje med preteklostjo in prihodnostjo. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem
P. 471
The Equals Sign: The Challenges
of Learning Arithmetic
Sanja Maričić
University of Kragujevac
sanjamaricic10@gmail.com
Nenad Milinković
University of Kragujevac
milinkovic.nenad84@gmail.com
Marija Brković
University of Kragujevac
marija.brkovic7@gmail.com
The authors of the paper draw attention to the equals sign as a key element
in learning arithmetic and the basis for learning other areas of mathematics,
and point out that students, as a rule, understand this concept operationally,
completely lacking relational understanding of it. The aim of the organized re-
search was to examine how first-grade and third-grade students understand
the concept of the equals sign at operationalized levels (operational, basic rela-
tional, and complex relational), and whether there are any differences between
them. Testing first-grade and third-grade students in primary school (N = 212)
yielded results that show that operational understanding of the equals sign is
prevalent among students, that relational understanding is underdeveloped,
and that third-grade students demonstrate better relational understanding of
the concept than first-graders. In consequence, the authors propose that de-
veloping relational understanding of the equals sign should be given more
attention in arithmetic classes.
Keywords: word problems, keywords, diagram, schema-based instruction, pri-
mary school
Introduction
Systemic mathematics education begins with arithmetic. From the very first
grade of primary school, students begin to form the concepts of natural num-
bers and operations with them. Among the numerous concepts and sym-
bols that students learn, the equals sign is the most scrutinized by mathe-
matics education researchers. Numerous authors point out that the equals
sign is one of the most important concepts and symbols in mathematics
(Darr 2003; Milinković, Maričić, and Ðokić 2022; Milinković, Maričić, and Lazić
Istenič, A., M. Gačnik, B. Horvat, M. Kukanja Gabrijelčič, V. R. Kiswarday, M. Lebeničnik, M. Mezgec in M. Volk, ur.
2023. Vzgoja in izobraževanje med preteklostjo in prihodnostjo. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem.
https://doi.org/10.26493/978-961-293-255-8.471-489
of Learning Arithmetic
Sanja Maričić
University of Kragujevac
sanjamaricic10@gmail.com
Nenad Milinković
University of Kragujevac
milinkovic.nenad84@gmail.com
Marija Brković
University of Kragujevac
marija.brkovic7@gmail.com
The authors of the paper draw attention to the equals sign as a key element
in learning arithmetic and the basis for learning other areas of mathematics,
and point out that students, as a rule, understand this concept operationally,
completely lacking relational understanding of it. The aim of the organized re-
search was to examine how first-grade and third-grade students understand
the concept of the equals sign at operationalized levels (operational, basic rela-
tional, and complex relational), and whether there are any differences between
them. Testing first-grade and third-grade students in primary school (N = 212)
yielded results that show that operational understanding of the equals sign is
prevalent among students, that relational understanding is underdeveloped,
and that third-grade students demonstrate better relational understanding of
the concept than first-graders. In consequence, the authors propose that de-
veloping relational understanding of the equals sign should be given more
attention in arithmetic classes.
Keywords: word problems, keywords, diagram, schema-based instruction, pri-
mary school
Introduction
Systemic mathematics education begins with arithmetic. From the very first
grade of primary school, students begin to form the concepts of natural num-
bers and operations with them. Among the numerous concepts and sym-
bols that students learn, the equals sign is the most scrutinized by mathe-
matics education researchers. Numerous authors point out that the equals
sign is one of the most important concepts and symbols in mathematics
(Darr 2003; Milinković, Maričić, and Ðokić 2022; Milinković, Maričić, and Lazić
Istenič, A., M. Gačnik, B. Horvat, M. Kukanja Gabrijelčič, V. R. Kiswarday, M. Lebeničnik, M. Mezgec in M. Volk, ur.
2023. Vzgoja in izobraževanje med preteklostjo in prihodnostjo. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem.
https://doi.org/10.26493/978-961-293-255-8.471-489
