In mathematical text and talk, natural language is a constant companion to mathematical symbols. The purpose of this study is to identify different types of relations between natural language and symbolic language in mathematics textbooks. Here we focus on the level of integration. We have identified examples of high integration (e.g., when symbols are part of a sentence), medium integration (e.g., when the shifts between natural and symbolic language occurs when switching to a new line), and low integration (e.g., when symbols and written words are connected by the layout).
In this study, we examine how the use of natural language varies, considering the symbolic language in procedural and conceptual aspects of mathematics.
This paper focuses on relationships between vocabulary in mathematical tasks and aspects of reading and solving these tasks. The paper contains a framework that highlights a number of different aspects of word difficulty as well as many issues to consider when planning and implementing empirical studies concerning vocabulary in tasks, where the aspect of common/uncommon words is one important part. The paper also presents an empirical method where corpora are used to investigate issues of vocabulary in mathematical tasks. The results from the empirical study show that there are connections between different types of vocabulary and task difficulty, but that they seem to be mainly an effect of the total number of words in a task.
This empirical study examines how different types of symbols, familiar and unfamiliar, are processed in working memory; phonologically and/or visuo-spatially.
The mathematics PISA tasks are primarily supposed to measure mathematical ability and not reading ability, so it is important to avoid unnecessary demands of reading ability in the tasks. Many readability formulas are using both word length and sentence length as indicators of text difficulty. In this study, we examine differences and similarities between English, German, and Swedish mathematics PISA tasks regarding word length and sentence length. We analyze 146 mathematics PISA tasks from 2000–2013, in English, German, and Swedish. For each task we create measures of mean word and sentence length. To analyze if there are any differences between the three language versions of the tasks, we use t-tests to compare the three languages pairwise. We found that in average, the German versions have the longest words, followed by Swedish and then English. Average sentence length was highest for English, followed by German and then Swedish.
The purpose of this study is to deepen the understanding of the relation between the language used in mathematics tasks and the difficulty in reading and solving the tasks. We examine issues of language both through linguistic features of tasks (word length, sentence length, task length, and information density) and through different natural languages used to formulate the tasks (English, German, and Swedish). Analyses of 83 PISA mathematics tasks reveal that tasks in German, when compared with English and Swedish, show stronger connections between the examined linguistic features of tasks and difficulty in reading and solving the tasks. We discuss if and how this result can be explained by general differences between the three languages.
In this paper we suggest a theoretical model of the connection between the process of reading and the process of solving mathematical tasks. The model takes into consideration different types of previous research about the relationship between reading and solving mathematical tasks, including research about traits of mathematical tasks (a linguistic perspective), about the reading process (a psychological perspective), and about behavior and reasoning when solving tasks (a mathematics education perspective). In contrast to other models, our model is not linear but cyclic, and considers behavior such as re-reading the task.
In this study we analyse the communication competence included in two different frameworks of mathematical knowledge. The main purpose is to find out if mathematical communication is primarily described as communication of or about mathematics or if it is (also) described as a special type of communication. The results show that aspects of mathematics are mostly included as the content of communication in the frameworks but the use of different forms of representation is highlighted both in the frameworks and also in prior research as a potential cause for characterising mathematical communication differently than "ordinary" communication.
Det språk vi använder oss av i matematikklassrummet kan fokuseras på många olika sätt. Språket är också nödvändigt att förhålla sig till vid utvecklingen av sitt matematiska tänkande. Författarna diskuterar här relationer mellan språk och lärande.
There is much research on the role of theory in mathematics education research, at least from more overarching or theoretical perspectives. Micro analyses of the role of theory in particular research studies are rarer. We contribute by analysing one empirical study to allow for in-depth analyses and discussions around the role of theory in a specific case, concerning relationships between mathematics and reading. Our results show that studies that do not use an explicit theoretical model can still be strongly influenced by implicit theoretical assumptions. We conclude that it is important to identify existing theoretical assumptions in an empirical research study and try to convey them as clearly as possible, and we discuss specific issues concerning research on relationships between mathematics and reading.
This paper reports on a par of an evaluation of the professional development program (PDP) Boost for Mathematics in Sweden. Around 200 mathematics lessons were observed, and the teachers were interviewed after each lesson. The findings indicate that the PDP has had a significant impact on the teachers’ knowledge about the mathematical competencies as they are presented in the national curriculum documents, and that the teaching practice had improved and now gives the students better possibilities to develop the competencies. The results also show that these improvements are still present one year after the program had ended.
This study reports on the relation between commonness of the vocabulary used in mathematics tasks and aspects of students’ reading and solving of the tasks. The vocabulary in PISA tasks is analyzed according to how common the words are in a mathematical and an everyday context. The study examines correlations between different aspects of task difficulty and the presence of different types of uncommon vocabulary. The results show that the amount of words that are uncommon in both contexts are most important in relation to the reading and solving of the tasks. These words are not connected to the solution frequency of the task but to the demand of reading ability when solving the task.
This study aims to construct a framework of linguistic properties of mathematical tasks that can be used to compare versions of mathematics test tasks in different natural languages. The framework will be useful when trying to explain statistical differences between different language versions of mathematical tasks, for example, differences in item functioning (DIF) that are due to inherent properties of different languages. Earlier research suggests that different languages might have different inherent properties when it comes to expressing mathematics. We have begun with a list of linguistic properties for which there are indications that they might affect the difficulty of a task. We are conducting a structured literature review looking for evidence of connections between linguistic properties and difficulty. The framework should include information about each property including methods used to measure the property, empirical and/or theoretical connections to aspects of difficulty, and relevance for mathematical tasks.
There is an increasing use of digital learning resources in mathematics education,which provides potential for multimodal approaches and new ways for students to meet and learn mathematics, but the outcome depends on the design and the implementation of the digital resources (Hoyles, 2018). This on-going study contributes by examining affordances of combinations of different modes in relation to number sense. We use Halliday’s social semiotic theory (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2013) and McIntosh et al.(1992) number sense framework for analysing a specific app, Vektor. We analysed the two exercises in the app that relate to aspects of number sense, Number pals and Number line. Each round in respective exercise was analysed with respect to Halliday’s three metafunctions: ideational, interpersonal, and textual. For the ideational function, McIntosh et al.’s framework was used to characterise the mathematical content. As an example, figure 1 illustrates the second and third rounds in Numberpals. In these rounds, both coloured rectangles and numerals are used to present the mathematics, and the main aspect of number sense in focus is identified as Multiple representations for numbers, for example, two red + three green = one red + four green, and 2+3=1+4. In the first round there were no numerals in the bars, only rectangles, and in the later rounds there were only numerals in the bars.Preliminary results, concerning the ideational metafunction, show that the mathematical object in focus may be perceived in different ways; either as just rectangles that should be combined (in a visual/geometrical sense), or as numbers of rectangles, or as numbers (and relations between numerals). This can impact students’ development of number sense. Further analyses will include all metafunctions and a focus on progression in the exercises.
It is agreed that algebra has an important role in physics, particularly through handling symbols. A lot of previous research has focused on how mathematics is used in physics from perspectives where mathematics is taken for granted, and not addressing potential differences of mathematics in the physics classroom and in the mathematics classroom. Studies addressing differences between both subjects have been based on researchers’ own experiences of mathematics in both subjects. Thus, more focused empirical research is needed. The purpose of this study is to clarify similarities and differences between mathematics and physics concerning the use of algebraic symbols. Analyses were based on comparisons between upper secondary textbooks in mathematics and in physics from a discourse perspective. Statistical methods were used to decide if there were any significant differences between the subjects. Results showed an overlap in the algebra discourse in both subjects, but also several differences concerning core aspects of algebra. For example, a higher number of different algebraic symbols in equations in physics than in mathematics, and algebraic symbols are more seldom referred to by words in mathematics than in physics. This can make it difficult for students to identify similarities in the algebraic discourses in both subjects.
Research literature points to the importance of objectification when learning mathematics, and thereby in the discourse of mathematics. To increase the field’s understanding of aspects and degrees of objectification in various mathematical discourses, our study uses the combination of two sub-processes of objectification in order to analyse upper-secondary teachers’ word use in relation to any type of mathematical symbols. Our results show that the verbal discourse around symbols is very objectified. This can put high demands on students understanding of their teacher, since it might be needed that the students have reached a certain degree of objectification in their own thinking in order to be able to participate in a more objectified discourse. The results also show that there exist patterns in the variation of the degree of objectification, in particular that the discourse tends to be more objectified when more familiar symbols are used. This exploratory study also reveals several phenomena that could be the focus of more in-depth analyses in future studies.
Research has identified several aspects that influence students' transition to mathematics studies at university, but these aspects have often been studied separately. Our study contributes to the field's understanding of the transition between upper secondary and university mathematics by taking a multifaceted perspective not previously explored. We analyse experiences and attainment in mathematics of 154 engineering students with respect to known aspects of this transition, and our results show that it is important to consider several aspects together in order to understand the full complexity of the transition. It is revealed that students with previous experiences of university studies, when compared with new first year undergraduates, perceive a larger difference between studying mathematics at the upper secondary level and university. Our results also show that the engineering students enrolled in distance programmes experience larger differences between secondary and tertiary levels than engineering students enrolled in campus programmes. Furthermore, our analyses show that students' success in mathematics is related to their perceptions of the rift experienced in the transition. In all, our results highlight the importance of taking a student perspective in the development of explanatory and useful models of students' transition between upper secondary and university mathematics.
Argumentation is a key skill in most school subjects and academic disciplines, including science and mathematics. This study compares explicit argumentation in first-semester university textbooks in biology, chemistry and mathematics in order to increase the understanding of how similarities and differences between disciplines can contribute to, or disrupt, students’ transferrable argumentation skills. Results show that there is significantly more explicit argumentation in the mathematics textbook compared to the biology and chemistry textbooks, and signifycantly more explicit argumentation in the chemistry textbook compared to the biology textbook. Further, the biology textbook contains less argumentation marked by classical argumentative markers such as “since”and “because” and more marked with other, less clear, types of markers such as “which is why” and “when” compared to the other two textbooks. The mathematics textbook contains more complex (recursive) argumentation than the science books. Thereby, the subject-specific languages inthe disciplines have potential to offer students different examples of argumentation. The results will be discussed in relation to students’ development of scientific literacy.
When mathematics tasks are used in multilanguage assessments, it is necessary that the task versions in the different languages are equivalent. The purpose of this study is to deepen the knowledge on different aspects of equivalence for mathematics tasks in multilanguage assessment. We analyze mathematics tasks from PISA 2012 given to students in English, German and Swedish. To measure formal equivalence, we examine three linguistic features of the task texts and compare between language versions. To measure functional equivalence, a Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis is conducted. In addition, we examine statistically if there is a relation between DIF and the differences regarding linguistic features. The results show that there is both DIF and differences regarding the linguistic features between different language versions for several PISA tasks. However, we found no statistical relation between the two phenomena.
When mathematics tasks are translated to different languages, there is a risk that the different language versions are not equivalent and display differential item functioning (DIF). In this study, we aimed to identify possible sources of DIF. We investigated whether differences in some linguistic features are related to DIF between the English (USA), German, and Swedish versions of mathematics tasks of the PISA 2012 assessment. The linguistic features chosen in this study are grammatical person, voice (active/passive), and sentence structure. We analyzed the three different language versions of 83 mathematics PISA tasks in three steps. First, we calculated the amount of differences in the three linguistic features between the language versions. Then, we calculated DIF, using the Mantel-Haenszel procedure pairwise for two language versions at a time. Finally, we searched for correlations between the amount of linguistic differences and DIF between the versions. The analysis showed that differences in linguistic features occurred between the language versions – differences in voice were most common – and that several items displayed intermediate or large level of DIF. Still, there were no statistical significant correlations between differences in linguistic features and DIF between the language versions, that is, there must be other sources of DIF.
When the results of international comparative studies such as PISA or TIMSS get published, they are discussed broadly in media and are used to influence politics and public opinion. To solve mathematics PISA tasks, students have to read and understand the task text. Still, since the mathematics tasks are primarily supposed to measure mathematical ability and not reading ability, it is important to avoid unnecessary demands of reading ability in the tasks. In addition, the different language versions of a task used in PISA might vary in reading difficulty. Such differences can result in differential item functioning (DIF), that is, that students with the same mathematical ability but from different countries have a different probability of answering the item correctly. One reason for DIF between language versions is that linguistic features can differ between language versions. In this study we focus on four different linguistic features that in earlier studies have shown connections to the difficulty of solving mathematics tasks (e.g., Abedi, Lord, & Plummer, 1997).
This study is part of a larger project examining the relation between the language used in mathematics tasks and both the tasks’ difficulty and demand of reading ability. The research questions in this study are: Which differences in the four linguistic features investigated occur between PISA tasks in English, German, and Swedish? Which of these differences are related to DIF between the task versions? The English (USA), German, and Swedish language versions of 83 mathematics tasks of the PISA 2012 assessment are analyzed. The first step of the analysis was to search for differences in the four linguistic features between the different language versions of the tasks. The next steps will be quantitative analyses of the differences, a statistical analysis to detect DIF between the versions, and then statistical analyses to investigate possible relations between the differences and DIF. The first step showed that some differences occur sporadically, for example, the use of third person (he/she/it) in one language version and second person (you) in another language version. Other differences occur much more frequently. For example, differences in word order are quite common, in particular since the finite verb always is at the last position in subordinate clauses in German but not in English and Swedish. The next steps of the analysis are at present (January 2017) ongoing.
A reader of mathematical text must often switch between reading mathematical symbols and reading words. In this study, five different categories of structural connections between symbols and language, which invite such switches, are presented in a framework. The framework was applied in a study of Swedish mathematics textbooks, where 180 randomly selected pages from different educational stages were analyzed. The results showed a significant change in communication patterns as students progress through school. From a predomination of connections based on proximity found in year two, there is a gradual change to a predomination of symbols interwoven in sentences in year eight. Furthermore, more qualitative investigations of the different connections complemented the quantification, both through further explanations of the quantitative results, and through more examples of differences in communication patterns. The implications for readers of mathematics texts are discussed.
In this paper I analyze different existing definitions of the term beliefs, focusing on relations between beliefs and knowledge. Through this analysis I note several problems with different types of definitions. In particular, when defining beliefs through a distinction between belief and knowledge systems, this creates an idealized view of knowledge, seen as something more pure (less affective, less episodic, and more logical). In addition, attention is generally not given to from what point of perspective a definition is made; if the distinction between beliefs and knowledge is seen as being either individual/psychological or social. These two perspectives are also sometimes mixed, which results in a messy construct. Based on the performed analysis, a conceptualization of beliefs is suggested.
The discursive use of ‘belief’ in research articles are analyzed as a contribution to the reflexive activity in belief-research, in particular regarding theoretical aspects of the notion of belief. The purpose of this paper is to create an explicitly described procedure for such an analysis, from the selection of data to categorizations of the smallest unit of analysis. The method of analysis builds on some linguistic structures, focusing in this paper on the use of adjectives and verbs in relation to ‘belief’. From the analysis of the use of ‘belief’ in eight articles a set of categories is created describing different uses of the notion of belief.
The main question discussed in this paper is whether students need to learn how to read mathematical texts. I describe and analyze the results from different types of studies about mathematical texts; studies about properties of mathematical texts, about the reading of mathematical tasks, and about the reading of mathematical expository texts. These studies show that students seem to develop special reading strategies for mathematical texts that are not desirable. It has not been possible to find clear evidence for the need of a specific ”mathematical reading ability”. However, there is still a need to focus more on reading in mathematics teaching since students seem to develop the non-desirable reading strategies.
För uppgifter som man använder i undervisning eller prov i matematik så vill man i första hand utveckla eller testa kunskaper i matematik och inte elevernas läsförmåga. Om undervisning i matematik bygger mycket på läsning så verkar det finnas större risk att elever som har svårigheter med läsning också kommer få svårigheter med matematikämnet. En tanke kan därför vara att man vill separera läsning från matematikämnet, för att på så sätt undvika dessa potentiella problem. Mitt syfte med denna artikel är att analysera vissa aspekter av relationer mellan läsning och matematik, för att på detta sätt se om och hur en sådan separering kan göras.
Denna artikel beskriver undersökningar kring hur universitetsstudenter och skolelever läser olika typer av texter. Frågor jag vill besvara är hur man bör förhålla sig till läsning inom matematikutbildning och om man behöver behandla läsförståelse som en del av undervisning inom matematik. I artikeln behandlar jag undersökningar kring läsning av uppgiftstexter samt undersökningar kring läsning av förklarande texter. Därefter jämför jag dessa olika typer av lässituationer och noterar då vissa likheter mellan lässtrategier som elever använder sig av i de olika situationerna. Bland annat noterar jag att texter som innehåller symboler tycks aktivera en speciell lässtrategi hos elever. Denna strategi verkar handla om att fokusera på symboler och andra typer av nyckelord i texten, vilket resulterar i en sämre läsförståelse. En slutsats är därför att det finns behov av att behandla läsning i matematikundervisning eftersom elever på egen hand tenderar att utveckla bristfälliga lässtrategier. Jag diskuterar också förslag på hur man kan göra detta. Som avslutning i artikeln diskuterar jag även hur resultaten om läsning kan ses i relation till andra forskningsresultat.
In this paper I investigate what types of epistemologies are conveyed through properties of mathematical discourse in two lectures. A main purpose is to develop and explore methods for a type of analysis for this investigation. The analysis focuses on the types of statements and types of arguments used in explicit argumentations in the lectures. This type of analysis proves to be useful when characterizing epistemological aspects of lectures. However, some limitations are also noted, in particular that it was common to use more implicit types of argumentations in the lectures, which was not included as data in the present analysis.
This study focuses on a distinction between process- and object-oriented discourses when characterising the discourse of university students' summaries of lectures and examining connections between students' discourse and the discourse of lectures. Results show that students' discourse in general tends to be process-oriented, by their use of active verbs and little use of nominalisations. Students' summaries of process-oriented lectures also tend to be more process-oriented, but the differences between individual students are larger than differences caused by variations of the discourse in the lectures.
In order to refine existing theories of beliefs, attention is given to the ontology of beliefs, in particular how a belief can be seen as a mental object or a mental process. The analysis focuses on some central aspects of beliefs; unconsciousness, contextualization, and creation and change of beliefs, but also relates to research methodology. Through the analysis, the creation of belief is highlighted as a central aspect for more in-depth theories of beliefs. The outline of a theoretical framework is described – a framework that has the benefit of creating a coherent integration of all different aspects discussed, and which can also be used as a framework when designing and analyzing methods for empirical research.
The inclusion of competencies in curriculum documents can be seen as an international reform movement in mathematics education. The purpose of this study is to understand which role mathematical competencies have in curriculum documents in different countries, with a focus on the relationship between competencies and content. Curriculum documents from 11 different countries were analysed. The results reveal three different themes of variation, concerning if the competencies are specific to mathematics, if competencies are described as learning goals, and if such learning goals are differentiated between grade levels.
The study presented in this paper is a contribution to the scientific discussion about the role and use of theory in mathematics education research. In particular, focus is here on the use of and comparison between different types of theories and frameworks, which is discussed primarily through the example of an empirical study examining what types of messages about mathematics are conveyed in lectures. The main purpose of this paper is to examine how different types of theories and frameworks can affect different parts of the research process.
In this chapter I examine what roles different types of prior knowledge have in the comprehension process when reading mathematical texts. Through theoretical analyses, three central aspects are highlighted; cognitive structure, cognitive process, and metacognition. For all these three aspects, questions arise regarding relationships between general and content-specific types of prior knowledge. Some empirical studies are described that study these questions.
In order to develop more detailed knowledge about possible effects of beliefs in mathematics education, it is suggested that we look more in-depth at more general types of theories. In particular, the study of relations between epistemological beliefs and communication is put forward as a good starting point in this endeavor. Theories of the constructs of epistemological beliefs and communication are analyzed in order to try to create a coherent theoretical foundation for the study of relations between the two constructs. Although some contradictions between theories are found, a type of unification is suggested, building on the theories of epistemological resources and discursive psychology.
A common problem in belief research seems to be a missing link between aspects of theory and empirical analyses and results. This issue highlights a question of how dependent empirical studies about beliefs actually are on the theoretical perspective described in the study. In this paper, I examine relationships between two different perspectives. One perspective focuses on belief change, and seems to rely on a type of cognitive perspective, where beliefs can be characterized as mental objects. The other perspective argues for moving away from such cognitive perspective and instead to adopt a participatory perspective in the analysis of mathematics teaching. The results show that the study about belief change is not dependent on seeing beliefs as mental objects, but that this study could as well have been located within a participatory perspective.
University students' evaluations of mathematical presentations are examined in this paper, which reports on part of a pilot study about different types of presentations, regarding different topics, formats (oral or written), and discourses (process- or object-oriented). In this paper focus is on different formats; oral lectures and written texts. Students’ written comments about what is good or bad about given presentations are analysed in order to examine what students focus on when evaluating the quality of presentations. In addition, evaluations given about written and oral presentations are compared in order to examine if/how format affects students’ evaluations regarding quality.