Social Interaction and the construction of Mathematical knowledge:An Enthnographic Study of a Third-Grade Mathematical Classroom

• Main Authors: Tzeng Jyh-Hwa, 曾志華
• Other Authors: Hsiao-Lan Sharon Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 1997
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/00754686351622811950

碩士 === 國立嘉義師範學院 === 國民教育研究所 === 86 === Social Interaction and the Costruction of Mathematical Knowledge: An enthnographic study of a Third-Grade Mathematical Classroom Abstract The main purpose of this study is to investigate the culture of athird-grade mathematical classroom with emphasis on the social interactionand the construction of mathematical knowledge in which the teacher''s,Ms.Lin,teaching perspective was generally compatible with current constructivisttheory of knowledge. By adopting enthnographic research methods to the clssroom observation,the analyses indicated that Ms.Lin''s mathematical classroom is a place where everybody plays mathematics together,and eventhere''s on need of any textbook during learning activities. In this classroom,problem-solving and group-discussion are the students'' major learningactivities. The major tasks of the teacher includ:guiding students learningby constantly questioning,assisting students in their problem-solving andsocial-interactions,and adjusting instruction based on the results of constantassessment. So,the students and the teacher were both perceiving intellectualgrowth together,and their relationship was based on a collavorative sense.Basically students'' construction of mathematical knowledge is influenced bytheir experiences gained from interaction with their teacher,especially theexperiences of involving the use of mathematical language. Because thestudents were lacking peer interaction experience,establishing the game rulesbecame necessary for maintaining peer social interaction in the classroom. When the students'' experience of participating in social interactions becamemuch more mature,the group consensus turned out to be stronger,and theinteractive atmosphere among the students was changed from competition tocollaboration. Students had very good performances in terms of their learningattitudes,self-confidence,and learning outcomes. It seems that the studentslike mathematics very much based on their actively asking for playing mathematics again and again. Based on the research findings,this study points to the followingssuggestions:(1)to leave some space for teacher and students to constructcurriculm together;(2)to encourage teachers to adjust their perspectives onteaching based on practice-centered reflection and on-going professionaldevelopment;(3)to adopt multiple/alternative approaches in evaluation,especially focusing on students'' problem-posing and problem-solving skills;(4)to expand the scope of research,for example,examing issues of implementingconstructivist teaching approaches in different mathematics classrooms atdifferent levels,investigating the relationship between the interaction ofmathematical languages and the understanding of mathematical conception,studying the models of social interactions in mathematics classrooms are allvaluable research area in the future.