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    Proportional Reasoning Project

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    api-548914938
    This document discusses proportional reasoning strategies used by 2nd and 5th grade students on math word problems. It found that: 1) Only 36% of 2nd graders used a multiplicative strategy compared to 67% of 5th graders, due to 5th graders having more multiplication knowledge. 2) Both grades predominantly used unit rate strategies over other multiplicative strategies like scaling due to the problem posed. 3) No students used additive strategies, showing they understood the proportional nature of the problem. The document concludes teachers should choose word problems encouraging a variety of strategies and teach students different proportional reasoning approaches.

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    Proportional Reasoning Project

    Uploaded by

    api-548914938
    75 views14 pages
    This document discusses proportional reasoning strategies used by 2nd and 5th grade students on math word problems. It found that: 1) Only 36% of 2nd graders used a multiplicative strategy compared to 67% of 5th graders, due to 5th graders having more multiplication knowledge. 2) Both grades predominantly used unit rate strategies over other multiplicative strategies like scaling due to the problem posed. 3) No students used additive strategies, showing they understood the proportional nature of the problem. The document concludes teachers should choose word problems encouraging a variety of strategies and teach students different proportional reasoning approaches.

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    This document discusses proportional reasoning strategies used by 2nd and 5th grade students on math word problems. It found that: 1) Only 36% of 2nd graders used a multiplicative strategy compared to 67% of 5th graders, due to 5th graders having more multiplication knowledge. 2) Both grades predominantly used unit rate strategies over other multiplicative strategies like scaling due to the problem posed. 3) No students used additive strategies, showing they understood the proportional nature of the problem. The document concludes teachers should choose word problems encouraging a variety of strategies and teach students different proportional reasoning approaches.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    75 views14 pages

    Proportional Reasoning Project

    Uploaded by

    api-548914938
    This document discusses proportional reasoning strategies used by 2nd and 5th grade students on math word problems. It found that: 1) Only 36% of 2nd graders used a multiplicative strategy compared to 67% of 5th graders, due to 5th graders having more multiplication knowledge. 2) Both grades predominantly used unit rate strategies over other multiplicative strategies like scaling due to the problem posed. 3) No students used additive strategies, showing they understood the proportional nature of the problem. The document concludes teachers should choose word problems encouraging a variety of strategies and teach students different proportional reasoning approaches.

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    Proportional Reasoning

    Aly McDonald
    Math Problem for Second Grade (Ages 7-8)

    If 2 donuts cost $6, how


    much would it cost to buy
    5 donuts?
    Percentages (11 Students)

    Multiplicative: 36% (4 students)


    Additive: 0%
    No strategy used: 64% (7 students)

    Multiplicative Strategies:
    Unit Rate: 100% (4 students)
    Scale Factor: 0%
    Scale Up: 0%
    Cross Multiplying: 0%
    Comparison to 5th grade students Jake needs 3 worms
    each day to feed his 4
    birds. How many
    worms would Jake
    Multiplicative: 67% (10 students)
    need each day if he
    Additive: 0% had 16 birds?
    No strategy used: 33% (5 students)

    Multiplicative Strategies:
    Unit Rate: 20% (2 students)
    Scale Factor: 50% (5 students)
    Scale Up: 30% (3 students)
    Cross Multiplying: 0%
    Comparison to 5th grade students

    Differences:
    - 5th grade has the prior knowledge of multiplication
    strategies
    - The question posed to the 5th grade students made it
    easier to do the scale factor and scale up methods
    - 2nd grade has not covered much multiplication yet, this
    is why we saw no students use the scale factor strategy

    Similarities:
    - No additive strategies were used in both grade levels
    - Cross multiplication was not used as well
    Misconception

    This student solved the math


    problem by adding 6 five
    times to get $30. He
    understood the problem as one
    donut costs $6. Therefore, he
    added 6 five times because
    the question asked for the
    price of 5 donuts.
    Multiplicative Strategies

    All four of our students that were able to


    complete the problem using a multiplicative
    strategy, used the unit rate strategy. Each
    one first found the price of one donut, then
    used that knowledge to find the price of 5
    donuts.
    Unit Rate Strategy
    Other Strategies

    ● The other 7 students solved the problem using neither


    a multiplicative strategy or an additive strategy.

    ● It seems as though these students did not understand


    how to approach solving the problem, but still gave it
    their best try.
    What we learned from this experience

    ● The biggest, most important thing we learned from this


    experience is that the proportional reasoning math problem
    that we gave the students was not the best problem we could
    have created.
    ○ Restricted the use of scale factor and scaling up
    strategies
    ○ Resulted in only 4 students using a multiplicative
    strategy
    What we would do next:

    ● Pose a different question to students that encourages a


    wide range of strategies to be used. The question could
    be “If 2 donuts cost $6, how much would it cost to buy 8
    donuts?”
    ○ This would give us a better understanding of where each student is
    and the strategies they choose to solve the problem.
    ● Teach students different strategies to approach math
    problems in different operations and content.
    ● Begin to teach students multiplication.
    Implications this project has for us as teachers

    ● As teachers, we have to be mindful of the math problems


    we use in the class and that we give to our students.
    They need to be problems that offer opportunities to use
    more than one strategy.
    ● Always recognize that students are more capable than we
    realize.
    ● In a classroom, there will be diverse ways that students
    approach math problems.

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