Understanding of Mathematical Equivalence in U.S. and Chinese Elementary School Students

• In Event: Elementary Preparation for Learning Algebra Concepts

Abstract

Many American students misunderstand the equal (“=”) sign, interpreting it as a command to calculate rather than an expression of equivalence. We looked at whether this problem extends across cultures, comparing US and Chinese elementary students’ equation solving, equation judgments, and equation-based story problem generation. Results showed that though Chinese students showed better understanding of mathematical equivalence and used it to explain their computational strategy or to discuss other’s solutions, they nonetheless made similar errors with their US peers when generating story problems, representing the equal sign as a command to calculate. Misunderstanding the equal sign as a command to calculate rather than an expression of equivalence may indeed reflect a fundamental problem in learning mathematics.

Authors

• Xingyu Pan, University of Michigan

• Kevin F. Miller, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor