Sixth Grade Mathematics Students: Expert-Novice

Distinction of Area and Perimeter of the Rectangle

Haitham M. Alkhateeb, Ph.D.
Abstract
This study was designed to identify and examine differences between
expert and novice students understandings of the area and perimeter of a
rectangle. One hundred eight students (M = 11.3 yr., SD = 0.48, range = 11 to 13
yr.) were asked to respond to an essay question that asked them to explain the
area and perimeter of a rectangle mentioning any ideas, concepts, or formulas
they think are necessary or helpful. Students responses were rank-ordered on a
rubric, and were analyzed using qualitative methodology to search for
characteristics that discriminated between expert and novice students. Results
suggest differences in the ways expert and novice students understand the
concept of the area and perimeter. Specifically, evidence is presented indicating
that using formulas, examples, and drawing strategies can play a significant role
in expert responses. Recommendations include that the strategies observed
among the experts be incorporated into teaching mathematics in general, but
especially at Grade 5, 6, and 7, where standards related to area and perimeter of
a rectangle are listed. The identified strategies provide teachers with valuable
clues concerning instruction and assessment strategies for mathematics students,
especially when teaching the concepts of area and perimeter of a rectangle.
Background
The purpose of this research study is to assess students conceptual
understanding of area and perimeter among 6th grade students through essay
writing. Specifically, the following research question is addressed: How do
novice and expert students of 6th grade mathematics exhibit differences in the
way they explain the concepts of area and perimeter of a rectangle?
Because the measurement topic is an important component of K-12
mathematics curricula, students are expected to understand it as an integral part
of their mathematical literacy. A standard involving understanding the concepts
of area and perimeter of squares and rectangles is first introduced in 3rd grade,
according to the Qatar Mathematics Curriculum Standards (Supreme Education
Council, 2004). At this level, students are expected to know that perimeter is the
distance measured around the boundary of a figure. They do simple problems
that involve finding the perimeter and area of squares and rectangles. An
example is: Here is a centimeter square grid. On the grid, draw a rectangle
with a perimeter of 10 cm (Supreme Education Council, 2004, p. 88). The
concept is revisited again in 4th grade, where students find the area and perimeter
of simple shapes with problems such as, A thin wire 20 centimeters long is
formed into a rectangle. The width of the rectangle is 4 centimeters. What is its
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35

length? (Supreme Education Council, 2004, p. 102). In 5th grade, students solve
simple problems that involve finding the areas and perimeters of shapes related
to rectangles and squares, and the volumes of cuboids, for example, The area of
a square is 64 cm2. What is the length of its perimeter? (Supreme Education
Council, 2004, p. 116). The study of area and perimeter measurement is an
important part of the 6th grade mathematics curriculum for three important
reasons: firstly, because of the wide variety of everyday applications of area and
perimeter concepts in activities such as painting, tiling, distance and indeed any
task which involves dealing with two dimensional surface secondly, because
area and perimeter concepts are often used in textbooks and by teachers to
introduce many other mathematical ideas; and thirdly, this is a critical time in
students education of mathematics in Qatar as it prepares them for middle
school mathematics.
Writing is an important part of learning mathematics. Across all grade
levels, the Principles and Standards for School Mathematics (NCTM, 2000)
recommended writing as a way of communicating mathematics and
strengthening students mathematical thinking, because it requires them to
reflect on their work and to clarify their thoughts about the ideas and concepts.
Emphasis is that students should have frequent opportunities to express their
thinking in writing, because the ability to make mathematical thinking
observable helps them clarify their thoughts. It also enables them to use
mathematical language that is more precise to express their ideas and deepen
their understanding of mathematics in order to become better mathematical
thinkers.
Research also indicates that writing is a valuable element of
mathematics learning (Beidleman, Jones, & Wells, 1995; and Meel, 1999).
Mathematics educators recognize the use of reading and writing in
communicating and learning mathematics. Bosse and Faulconer (2008) outlined
procedures that can be employed in mathematics assessment to create
experiences that promote reading and writing as tools for expressing
mathematics understanding. Donna Alvermann (2002) urges all teachers,
irrespective of their content area expertise, to encourage students to read and
write in a variety of ways. Pugalee (2005), who researched the relationship
between language and mathematics learning, proclaims that writing supports
mathematical reasoning and problem solving and aids students internalize the
characteristics of effective communication. He recommends that teachers read
student writing for evidence of logical conclusions, justification of answers and
processes, and the use of facts to explain their thinking. Learning to write about
mathematics using a mathematics rubric helped improve third graders'
competencies when explaining solution strategies in writing (Parker &
Breyfogle, 2011).
Educators and researches often notice that students have difficulty with
area measurement. For instance, students often confuse the area of a rectangle
with its perimeter. A review of the literature (e.g., Battista, Clements, Arnoff,
Battista, & Van Auken Borrow, 1998; Doig, Cheeseman, & Lindsey,1995;
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36

Kamii & Kysh, 2006; Lehrer & Chazan 1998; Outhred & Mitchelmore, 2000;
Reynolds & Wheatley, 1996) has indicated that student difficulty with the area
tasks is often due to their lack of conceptual understanding of area as a
quantitative attribute. Other studies also have assessed the confusion between
perimeter and area (e.g., Lehrer, Jenkins & Osana, 1998); Outhred and
Mitchelmore (2000) stressed on importance of conceptual understanding of
length measurement to understand the area measurement. Meaning, if teachers
could identify the growth of students conceptual understanding of length and
area measurement, they would be able to improve the teaching of these topics.
For example, Kidman (1999) found that students often confuse area and
perimeter, and tend to use addition to calculate areas when multiplication
strategies would be more beneficial Dickson (1989) noted that students have a
strong inclination to employ the rectangular area formula (Area = length
width) in all contexts, regardless of the shape and Baturo and Nason (1996)
revealed that such misconceptions are often deeply held and can continue to a
later age. Curry, Mitchelmore and Outhred (2006) examined development of
kids understanding of length, area and volume measurement in grades 1
through 4. Students in their study and based on incorrect reasons often rejected
the use of different sized units for area or volume but did not see a problem with
using different sized units for length. Curry, Mitchelmore and Outhred note that
young students appear to have a much poorer understanding of the need for
identical units that leave no gaps than teachers often assume, and they may
indeed have no clear concept of what they are measuring (p. 383).
Research on cognitive skills shows that there are qualitative
discrepancies in the knowledge and thinking of experts and novices. For
example, novices, unlike experts, underuse visual representations during
problem solving (Kozma, 2003). Studies of both experts and novices show that
the use of visual problem representations facilitates thinking and problem
solving performance (Moreno, Ozogul, Reisslein, 2011).
If knowledge is considered to be the making of connections or
associations between small elements of experience, a difference emerges
between an expert and a novice at mathematics. The expert has a larger and
richer corpus of associations between the basic links of mathematics and the
bigger patterns and processes of mathematics (Hughes, Desforges, & Mitchell,
2000). Studies of expertise in fields such as medical diagnosing (Norman, 2005)
show that experts not only have more knowledge about their field of expertise,
but also that their relevant knowledge is organized in long-term memory in such
ways that make it more accessible when it is needed.
The present study seeks a different, but complementary, emphasis on
expert/novice distinctions. First, the largely unexplored method of essay
questions is used to obtain the subjects responses. Secondly, the study focuses
on the concepts of area and perimeter of 6th grade students in Qatar. Very little is
known about how experts learn these concepts, and studies of this kind are rare
in the region. With the current extensive call for reform in mathematics
education in Qatar, it is imperative that the difficulties facing elementary
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37

students in mathematics be examined. Moreover, little work appears in the

literature on expert and novice in elementary mathematics; it is largely studied
in domains such as university courses, teacher preparation, and professional
development.
Purpose
Using an expert/novice contrast, this study assesses students
understanding of the concepts of area and perimeter of rectangles, and outlines
how these concepts are understood by both expert and novice students. The
results provide a dual opportunity. One is to deepen the understanding
associated with elementary students learning of area and perimeter; the second
is to contribute to the research literature regarding mathematics education in
Qatar, because it represents the debut of expert/novice contrast of elementary
mathematics in Qatar.
Methodology
Participants were 108 students from two elementary schools (one boys
school and one girls school) in Doha, Qatar. The sample included 51 (47%) boys
and 57 (53%) girls. Their ages ranged from 11 to 13 years, with a mean age of
11.3 years (SD = 0.48 years). Among the sample, 105 (97%) were Qatari
Nationals and the remaining three (3%) were of Egyptian and Yemeni descent.
In the middle of the academic year, students were given an essay
question in which they were to write about their conceptual understandings of
the area and perimeter of a rectangle. They were to address what the concepts
mean in a mathematics context, and to mention any necessary and helpful ideas
or concepts in their response. The essay question stated, Explain, in details, the
concept of the area and perimeter of a rectangle. Cite relevant ideas, concepts,
and formulas to support your explanation.
The researcher, using a carefully developed and validated performance
assessment rubric graded students responses to the research question. Student
essays were rank-ordered according to total possible score of 16. For analysis,
the top 25% (27 essays) were identified and referred to as the experts, and the
bottom 25% (27 essays) were labeled as the novices. Of the 27 expert
students, 10 were boys and 17 were girls. In the novice group, 15 students were
boys and 12 were girls. The teaching style in these mathematics classes was
mainly traditionalconsisting of large-group lectures and, sometimes, smallgroup problem-solving discussions.
Data collection also included demographic information, such as the
students age, grade, gender, nationality, and midyear achievement grade in
mathematics. Students midyear grades were provided by the sixth grade teacher
and recorded on the hard copy of the research essay response. Students did not
provide names or identification numbers since they were not required for
matching purposes.

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Qualitative content analysis was performed on the collected data, for

which frequency analysis was used. Statements that could possibly have
bearings upon conceptual understanding were given attention. Data were
assigned to categories and the frequencies and percentages were calculated. The
findings were transformed by making connections across categories. In the
transformation process, loadings associated with area and perimeter were
interpreted. Feedback to participants was not provided.
Results
An expert/novice qualitative examination of students responses
resulted in the identification of four categories, differences that distinguished
expert students from novice students. The terms expert and novice in this
study refer only to their skill in approaching this specific problem, and not their
overall skill in mathematical writing (a more general issue). The overall
students midyear mathematics achievement (M = 69.4, SD = 17.7, N = 108) was
moderate. The midyear mathematics achievement for boys (M = 68.6, SD =
17.5, N = 51) was comparable to girls (M = 70.1, SD = 18.1, N = 57). The
difference between the midyear mathematics achievement of the novices (M =
60.5, SD = 15.1, N = 27) and experts (M = 79.8, SD = 14.0, N = 27) was
= -4.874, p
, d = 1.35, a large effect according to the
significant,
criteria proposed by Cohen and Cohen (1983). The categorization of responses
indicated that expert students were better able to use formulas, definitions,
drawings, examples, and organization of their work than were the novice
students. These results are in line with other findings on expert/novice
distinction (e.g., Hardin, 2002; Moreno, Ozogul, & Reisslein, 2011).
The following are four (4) major findings from the study.
1.

Expert students began their essay with a clear definition or formula of

the area and perimeter, or they were more likely to use the area and
perimeter definition or formula mentally as part of their answer
showing a deep understanding. Novice students were less likely to
try a definition or formula, and were more likely to miss an
essential part of the definition or formulashowing a more
superficial understanding.
Student A, identified as an expert, began the essay with to find the
area of the rectangle, you have to multiply the width by the length;
and to find the perimeter of the rectangle; you have to find the sum
of the measure of all of its sides. Student B wrote area = length
width, and perimeter = 2 (length + width). Student C provided a
rectangle of 3 cm by 4 cm and dissected it to make 12 squares
(each is 1 cm by 1 cm) and wrote area = sum of the areas of the
squares (or number of squares inside the shape). Of the 27 expert
students, 15 (56%) of them followed this example for the area with

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slight variations; 21 (78%) of them followed this example for the

perimeter with slight variations.
Responses categorized as novice tended not to start so strongly
giving the (incorrect) definition or formula or not providing a
definition or formula at all. For example, Student Y left the area
question mostly blank and without either a definition or formula.
But for the perimeter, Student Y indicated, You multiply the
lengths of the four sides of the rectangle.
Others began with an incorrect or vague definition or formula of
the area and perimeter, as in the case of Student Z, who wrote,
multiply the sides for both concepts. Student X tried to define
the rectangle instead of touching on the area and/or perimeter, and
wrote for the area, it has 4 sides, it has equal sides, the angle is
, it has four corners, and the rectangle is a type of a square
but not a square. Student W stated for the perimeter, we add
together; no application or example was provided. Student V
wrote for the perimeter question, sum the sides; no other
information was provided.
A high proportion of responses for the area concept (26%), and for
the perimeter concept (19%), however, started with putting in
numbers and multiplying and/or adding them to find the area
and/or perimeter, but did not follow the correct procedure. For
example, Student U added the length of all sides to find the area,
and multiplied all sides to find the perimeter.
2.

Experts presented more ways to explain the concepts of area and

perimeter than novices. Expert students had a higher tendency to
support their answers with drawings, providing specific examples
of rectangles that included side lengths and units than novice
students. Novices did not provide such drawings or specific
examples of rectangles.
Perhaps the most basic way of understanding the concepts of area
and/or perimeter is through visualization. The use of graphics for
clarification was more common among the expert students (all of
them drew rectangles). For example, Student A, an expert student,
provided a rectangle labeled with a specific length for each side
including the unit (e.g., 6 cm, 3 cm, 6 cm, and 3 cm). 25 (93%) of
the 27 expert students, including Student A, followed this example
with slight variations. An example of a variation was provided by
Student D, who drew a rectangle labeled with numbers correctly,
but did not assign a correct unit; instead, providing 2
,4
,

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2
,4
as the side lengths. The student, however, provided
the correct unit for the area, stating it as A = 4 2 = 8
.
Aside from mislabeling the unit of the side length, it was a strong
example.
The generally lower level of understanding prevented novice
students from giving specific examples of area and/or perimeter or
from using a correct shape. Of the 27 novice students, 13 (48%)
used drawings in their essay in some way. For example, Student Y
(a novice) provided a triangle instead of a rectangle for the area
question; it was not labeled with any numbers or units except with
the word triangle. For the perimeter, Student Y provided a
rectangle labeled with 3, 3, 3, and 9 (A unit was not given.), and
these numbers were placed in the inside corners of the rectangle
where angles are usually labeled.
Others, such as Student U, drew a rectangle labeled with 12, 4, 12,
and 4 (A unit was not given.) and dissected it into 48 square units
but did not use these square units to calculate the total area. For the
perimeter, Student U drew the rectangle as an oval shape labeled
with four dimensions 2, 5, 2, and 5 (A unit was not given).
Student T drew a rectangle for the area and a triangle for the
perimeter labeled with only the words rectangle and triangle,
respectively. This was the entire response provided in Student Ts
essay.
Student S, another novice, provided two shapes for the area, a
rectangle labeled with 2 cm, 4 cm, 2 cm, 4 cm; and an isosceles
triangle labeled with 4 cm, 5 cm, and 5 cm.
Student J drew an equilateral triangle for the area question. It was
labeled with 1 on each side (A unit was not given.)
Unfortunately, these examples provided little or no insight on what
the concepts of area and/or perimeter actually mean.
3.

Expert students responses more often gave meaningful and correctlysolved examples referring to the area as
and
perimeter as
. Novice
students only said that the area and perimeter has something to do
with the sides.
Expert students have a stronger grasp of the concept of area and
perimeter and exactly what they mean. Student A stated that area
= 6 cm 3 cm = 18
and perimeter = 6 cm + 3 cm + 6 cm + 3
cm = 18 cm. Student B stated that area = length width = 10 5
= 50 (A unit was not given.); and stated that perimeter = 2 (5 +
10) = 30 (A unit was not given.)

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While the novice students might have had some idea that the
concepts of area and/or perimeter and the side lengths were
strongly connected, very few of them followed the right procedure
for calculating the area and/or perimeter, and those who did
calculate, missed details some minor; some major. Student Y, a
novice, did not provide any calculations for the area but stated,
perimeter = 3 3 3 9 = 118. Student U stated, area =
12 + 12 + 4 + 4 = 32 and stated, perimeter = 5 5 2 2 =
100. Student S who provided only a labeled rectangle and a
labeled isosceles triangle for the area question with no further
details for this part, calculated the perimeter for each shape stating
that the perimeter of rectangle = 4 + 4 + 2 + 2 = 8 cm, and that the
perimeter of triangle = 5 + 5 + 4 = 14 cm. Student Js equilateral
triangle for the area question stated, area = 1 1 1 = 1 cm.
4.

Expert students were better prepared than novices at choosing and

diversifying strategies. Expert students were more organized and
presented diagrams, calculations, and results more clearly and
more precisely than novice students. Their work was not well
organized and important data was difficult to locate.
Some students provided rectangles similar in shape to a variety of
geometric figures, such as a trapezoid, an octagon, or an oval
shape. Student R, a novice student, provided an imprecise
rectangle (more trapezoidal than a rectangular) labeled with the
measures 3 cm, 4 cm, 3 cm, and 4 cm. These measures were placed
in the interior of the drawn shape instead of the exterior, which is
the conventional way. The area was gives as, area 3 3 4 4
=132.
Another novice student, Student Q, provided a final answer for the
area that was difficult to understand including a rectangle (not
well drawn) with the dimensions 10, 15, 10, 15 (A unit was not
given.); yet the student wrote this for the area: A = 10 15 10
15 = 50. No information about the perimeter was provided from
Student Q. While some novice students provided reasonable
lengths, their calculations did not convey a correct understanding
of the area.
Discussion

In describing expertise, Klein and Hoffman (1993) state, novices

see only what is there, while experts can see what is not there (p.203). Ericsson
and Lehman (in van Gog, Ericsson, Rikers, and Paas, 2005) describe experts as
showing consistently superior performance on a specified set of representative
tasks for a domain (p. 277). An expert is expected to have a high degree of
proficiency, skill, and knowledge in a particular subject.

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Research literature reports that experts and novices from different fields
perform differently (Benner, 1984; Swanson, OConnor, & Cooney, 1990; Chae,
Kim, & Glass, 2005; Voss, Kunter, & Baumert, 2011; Rey & Buchwald, 2011).
Results from this study concur with those from previous research.
Moving from novice to expert involves considerably more than
developing a set of generic skills and strategies (Harper, 2007). In analyzing
students writing of the concepts of area and perimeter, the results of this study
highlight that the expert and novice students exhibit differences in the way they
perceive these two concepts.
Novice students have difficulty with the definition and/or formula of
the area and perimeter. They do not relate the area and/or perimeter to specific
examples as easily as expert students. The experts are better prepared than the
novices to answer the essay question by using specific examples. For many
students, applications of specific examples represent the most useful facets of
understanding these concepts. Overall, experts seem to be relatively consistent
in the examples/solutions and explanations they write. Additionally, experts are
more organized; they present their writings clearly and precisely. These results
are also consistent with earlier findings of a gap between experts and novices
(Norman, 2005).
Visual demonstrations seem to be of particular benefit for experts. By
concentrating on these differences, additional progress might be made to reduce
the gap between the experts and the novices by helping the novice student see
things the way the expert does. Interestingly, findings from statistics (Quilici &
Mayer, 1996) show that novices can be taught to represent problems on a more
expert level through instruction and practice.
Whereas the research regarding expert/novice differences within
mathematics has merit, there are several important limitations in this study that
must be acknowledged. First, essay responses are the sole source of the
assessment data provided for analyses and comparisons in the study. Second, the
study is limited to two topics in mathematics area and perimeter of a rectangle.
Despite these limitations, the study provides a rich analysis through the
comparison of responses demonstrating different levels of student
understanding. This subsequently offers insights into how students conceptual
understanding can influence the way these concepts should be taught. Moreover,
this study also informs the structure and content of teachers professional
development so that the evolution from novice to expert can advance at a more
rapid pace.
In conclusion, the present study extends our understanding of student
learning and provides information that is important to educators who seek ways
to improve students conceptual understanding through writing-to-learn
mathematics. This study provides a context that suggests that the observed
expert/novice distinctions in learning mathematics are worthy of further
investigation in other mathematics topics and at different grade levels to
determine the representativeness and generalizability of these results. Finally,
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43

the nature and sequence of student learning experiences need to be investigated

before offering recommendations that enable novices to evolve toward expertise.
Given that expert and novice students show understanding differently, additional
research is needed to observe whether novice students can be taught the skills of
experts and how it can be accomplished. Finally, more research is needed to
understand when and how students views regarding mathematics concepts shift,
and what experiences help students move from being novices to becoming
expert students.
Haitham M. Alkhateeb, Ph.D., University of Baltimore, Baltimore, USA
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