A Longitudinal Examination of Children's Developing Knowledge of Measurement: Mathematical and Scientific Concept and Strategy Growth from Pre-K through Grade 5

Board Of Trustees Of Illinois State University, Normal IL

Investigators

Abstract

The project proposes a longitudinal study that investigates the development of an understanding of measurement across 7 grades-from pre-K through Grade 5. Specifically, the project will establish clear cognitive accounts of the development of students' strategic and conceptual knowledge of measurement on increasingly demanding sets of length, perimeter, and area measurement tasks. The research questions are: How do students develop coherent knowledge and integrated strategies for measurement across the developmental span from pre-K though Grade 5? How are students' developing cognitive abilities for perceptual and numerical comparison, for coordinating and discriminating, for deductive logic, and for ordering and nesting sequences related to the development of knowledge and strategies for measurement? How are students' developing abilities for spatial thinking, algebraic reasoning, or proportional reasoning related to their measurement knowledge and strategies? How might students' developing representational fluency for measurement relate to their mathematical and scientific understanding of measurement? How is the development of students' developing knowledge of measurement (especially their use of rulers and other tools, with accuracy and precision) related to the development of their scientific modeling and reasoning across varying contexts? Two longitudinal studies will be conducted at two different sites: a New York site will address the early development of children's understanding and strategies, while an Illinois site will focus on later elementary level development. The researchers propose design cycles with clinical interviews, written interviews, and classroom teaching experiments.