Números Racionais: um estudo das concepções de alunos após o estudo formal

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2005

RESUMO

This work is aimed at identifying the fraction concept aspects related to the part-whole and quotient meanings, which remain not learned by students during the learning period that follows the formal teaching of these numbers. For this task, we sought to answer the following research question: Which aspects of the fraction concept in the part-whole and quotient meanings remain not learned by eighth grade students of elementary education, third grade high school students and higher education students in the exact sciences area?. This question leads us to a second one: What connections are there between these difficulties and the teaching practice deficiencies already mentioned in other researches? Three great ideas have guided the search for theoretical bases: the genesis of the rational number, focusing on the ideas of Caraça (1952), the principles of cognitivist psychology, based on Vygotsky s and Vergnaud s ideas, and the ideas of some mathematical educators who propose specific models for rational numbers, with an emphasis on Kieren, Behr, Nunes, Mack and Esolano and Gairín. An instrument was developed containing 48 questions involving the fraction concept in the part-whole and quotient meanings, in three levels of difficulty. It was taken by 13 eighth graders, 31 high shool students and 29 higher education students in the exact sciences area. The results obtained were considered under the quantitative and qualitative points of view, and it could be observed that, even in these learning levels, students still have considerable difficulty regarding the role of the unit in problems involving discrete situations and more abstract aspects of building rational numbers, like the insertion of integers and the clearing of solutions in terms of operations with fractions. At last, we sought to associate these difficulties to aspects of the teaching practice listed by other researchers, in an attempt to raise hypotheses for possible causes

ASSUNTO(S)

problems educacao matematica conception mathematical education matematica matematica -- estudo e ensino frações educação matemática concepções problemas numeros racionais fraction

ACESSO AO ARTIGO

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