From the past to the future of technology in mathematics education in Singapore
This paper discusses the changes in classroom instructions due to technology over the years in mathematics education, and how these changes have impacted mathematics learning and teaching. The impact on learning can be seen over a few phases in Singapore: The use of scientific and graphing calculators has allowed the focus on the developing of higher order thinking skills, while at the same time de-emphasizing the routine computation. With the introduction of various computer softwares such as spreadsheets, mathematics teaching and learning has moved towards the next level of emphasis on coding and computational thinking. Technology can and has been harnassed by teachers to enhance student learning. These will be discussed in details in the talk, with particular reference to the Singapore education context.
Fine-tuning in a design experiment
Quek, Tay, Toh, Leong, and Dindyal (2011) proposed that a design-theory-practice troika should always be considered for a designed package to be acceptable to the research users who, in this case, are teachers and schools. This paper describes the fine-tuning to the MProSE problem-solving design made by the teachers in the school after first round of teaching. This process involved teacher input from their experience, and detailed time-consuming discussions and learning between the researcher-designers and the teacher-implementers.
The roles of mathematics competition in Singapore mathematics education
The roles of mathematics competitions in Singapore mathematics education have expanded beyond helping the country in identifying and supporting of mathematical talents. In this note, test items from the past years mathematics competition were examined. It was proposed that mathematics competitions can potentially play three important roles in Singapore mathematics education: to (1) stretch students to explore mathematics beyond the usual school curriculum; (2) set direction in higher order thinking skills could be infused into the usual classroom teaching; and (3) preserve the “elementary mathematics” within the constantly evolving national mathematics curriculum. This note further presents some episodes of students’ responses to some competition questions from previous years. It was found that some students developed incomplete or incorrect mathematical reasoning but gave the correct answers to these questions, which is contradictory to the intention of setters of the questions. Readers are cautioned to the existence of a mismatch between the intentions of these competition questions and the actual format and structure of the competitions.
Diffusion of the mathematics practical paradigm in the teaching of problem solving: Theory and praxis
In this paper, we discuss the diffusion (of an innovation) and relate it to our attempt to spread our initial design of a mathematics practical paradigm in the teaching of problem solving.
Principles in using comics for mathematics classroom instruction
Mathematics has always been a difficult subject for many students. Consequently, many students fear the subject and refuse to engage in this subject. There are many educational theories which attempt to address students’ motivational and cognitive issues in learning mathematics. In this lecture, I attempt to propose an alternative approach of teaching mathematics through the use of comics based on my experience of infusing comics into the teaching of mathematics for the low progress learners. I further present a framework of infusing comics for mathematics instructions, and take reference from not only educational theories but also from the perspective of communication theory. In designing lessons using comics, I make reference to how the various elements of the communication model are taken into consideration in the design process. I illustrate the application of this framework with the use of exemplars, making reference from both primary and secondary levels. With the advent of Generative Artificial Intelligence, what appears to be a rather expensive process of developing comics package could potentially become relatively inexpensive, so that educators and designers could invest more time in conceptualizing the content of the comics package. Thus, the theoretical framework for the design process deserves greater attention to researchers and educators.
Teacher preparation for a problem solving curriculum
The role of the teacher is central to the success of any curriculum innovation. Thus, teachers’ professional development has become an increasingly important subject of discussion in recent education literature. In the design and implementation of the project reported here, teachers’ preparation for the problem-solving curriculum featured prominently. This paper discusses the challenges of selecting a suitable problem and ways of using it productively within a professional development programme that the authors carried out for the teachers involved in the project.
Examining the Singapore mathematics curriculum through the lens of mathematics
Assessment in a problem solving curriculum
In this paper we elaborate on the ways for assessing problem solving that goes beyond the usual focus on the products of the problem solving process. We designed a ‘practical’ worksheet to guide the students through the problem solving process. The worksheet focuses the solver’s attention on the key stages in problem solving. To assess the students’ problem solving throughout the process, we developed a scoring rubric based on Polya’s model (1954) and Schoenfeld’s framework (1985). Student response to the practical worksheet is discussed.