The Definitions of Spatial Quantities in Elementary Curriculum Materials

Nicholas J. Gilbertson, Jia He, V. Rani Satyam, Jack Smith, Eryn M. Stehr

Research output: Contribution to conferencePresentation

Abstract

U.S. students' challenges in understanding spatial measurement has been connected to the highly procedural focus of elementary curricula. Because the definitions of quantities are basic conceptual content, we examined definitional-type expressions (related to formal mathematical definitions) for spatial quantities (length, area and volume) within and across elementary curricula with attention to the inclusion of units, quantification, and exhausting space. We found inconsistencies in the presentation of these conceptual aspects. In some cases, the inclusion of particular conceptual content depended on the type of quantity, (e.g. "exhausting space" was strongly emphasized in area measure, but less so in length and volume).
Original languageAmerican English
StatePublished - Nov 5 2016
EventInternational Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education North American Chapter Annual Conference (PMENA) -
Duration: Oct 7 2017 → …

Conference

ConferenceInternational Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education North American Chapter Annual Conference (PMENA)
Period10/7/17 → …

Keywords

  • Definitions
  • Elementary curriculum materials
  • Spatial quantities

DC Disciplines

  • Mathematics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The Definitions of Spatial Quantities in Elementary Curriculum Materials'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this