The Role of Action in the Development of Angle Concepts

• In Event: 73.058 - Students' Mathematical Thinking: Grades K-5

Abstract

In this study, we examined the kinds of actions and angle representations that support the development of angle concepts. Thirty third and fourth grade students completed a body-based angle task during a 30-minute individual interview. We tracked students’ movements using Kinect for Windows software and identified key features describing the kinds of actions students took and the types of representations they used at each stage of the interview. We conducted a cluster analysis to identify similar patterns of actions within different stages of the interview, and we found that students with high prior knowledge and students who had large learning gains employed different patterns of actions than students with little to no learning gains.

Authors

• Carmen Petrick Smith

• Barbara Anne King, Florida International University

• Diana Gonzalez, University of Vermont

• Natalie Paul, Florida International University