Misconceptions In Education

Great Essays
As there is an increase in the expected requirements for mathematics within the curriculum, some individuals argue that high amounts of pressure will be placed upon pupils to complete work which exceeds their capabilities which may lead to the creation of confusion, misconceptions and misunderstanding (Dracup, 2015). However, Hansen et al. (2014: 1) believes that misconceptions in children’s learning are critical to comprehend how children learn and how to embrace these concepts to support every child’s ‘mathematical cognitive development’. Agreeably, Cockburn (2008) mentions that it should be emphasised that misconceptions are not negative but instead they help to reveal children’s reasoning and how they acquire an understanding of mathematical …show more content…
This is agreed by Mapolelo and Akinsola (2015) as they believe that with a strong level of integrated knowledge, teachers are more likely to teach the subject more dynamically with different pedagogies whilst encouraging and engaging students. Conversely, educators who possess an inexact knowledge of concepts may pass this understanding onto their students. They may also fail to identify misconceptions and lack a comprehension of key ideas which could leave children feeling ‘frustrated and can lead to deteriorating behaviour’ (Paton, 2010: 1). Moreover, Shepherd (2013) argues that not all teachers with a sound knowledge are effective teachers and not all teachers with poor subject understanding are ineffective teachers. …show more content…
According to Hansen et al. (2014), many children are introduced to the concept of fractions from an early age by using practical resources. For example, some parents encourage early notions by allowing children to choose the biggest half or by asking their child to share out their sweets. This however can cause incorrect mathematics as children should be taught that halves are equal. Within my lessons, we used a variety of resources such as counting objects, playdough, multilink, number cards and real life resources including a cake and pizzas. The counting objects included a variety of seeds, conkers and twigs, which linked in with our nocturnal animal learning theme, (Appendix 5) to allow children to explore amounts of fractions by using real life objects. By using a Real-word connection approach, it helped to involve relevance, complexity and inspiration of the world around them (Resources for Rethinking, 2016). I also found that linking back to the Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic (VAK) learning styles which were originally developed by Bandler and Grinder (1970), the resources I used helped and appealed to sensory and kinaesthetic learners as it gave them a more hands on activity. In order to help correct individual’s misconceptions about fractions, it was important for me to demonstrate how

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Summary of 7 Major Misperceptions About the Liberal Arts When it comes to the discussion about liberal arts degrees, most people in today’s crippling economics believe that it’s a luxury degree, that only the “rich” can afford to obtain, or an education meant for those who want to become involved with politics. Others also believe that those who major in liberal arts will be less likely to make a career of it and view America subordinate against other countries. In his article “7 Major Misperceptions About the Liberal arts,” Sandford J. Ungar takes a stand against the common misperceptions about a liberal arts degree. As a liberal-arts college president Ungar acknowledges that the cost for an American higher education is dramatically increasing.…

    • 252 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nt1310 Unit 1 Assignment

    • 986 Words
    • 4 Pages

    This essay concludes this assignment and this semesters mathematics module, when first starting the module I felt that my subject knowledge was adequate taking into account that I am out of practise by 4 years. When attending the seminars I quickly realised that I had to revise certain areas of subject knowledge in order to be able to have better practice, and I now have a greater understanding of effective pedagogy. In this essay however I will be discussing the research I have made on how attitudes surrounding mathematics has an impact on how well children perform in a mathematics lesson. There is much written documentation of the complexity of effectively teaching and deliver a good standard mathematics lesson to children one crucial point rasied after studying this was the importance of having a positive attitude around the subject, and the subject matter. Haylock (2007) suggested that the effectiveness of teaching mathematics with an…

    • 986 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I agree that as teachers should have “a thorough knowledge of what we teach, the ability to interpret such knowledge authentically, and the skill to communicate effectively” (Brummelen, 2009) It is very important that we know and understand the material ourselves, but the act of teaching it to our students goes way beyond our knowledge. Our job does not simply consist of relaying information about our subject, but conveying that knowledge in a way that will stimulate a deeper learning.…

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    While all students deserve to be treated equally, part of that equality is that they all have a fair shot at receiving a quality education. In my future classroom, I plan to work closely with my struggling students and to utilize strategies such as those presented in this reading. In general, mathematics is a difficult subject to grasp and can be made even more challenging due a language barrier or a fear of speaking up. Strategies, such as those highlighted in this reading, are needed to help all students to achieve their…

    • 780 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Manipulatives In Maths

    • 2019 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Their selection and effective use needs careful consideration and meticulous planning (Drews, 2007). Judgment regarding the appropriateness of a resource should be based on the extent of how the mental images produced by children are likely to be helpful/unhelpful in scaffolding their thinking (Bottle, 2005). Drews (2007) also noted that whilst structured manipulatives, such as, Dienes and Cuisenaire are especially helpful for children struggling with decomposition and number property and relationships, unstructured manipulatives such as Multilink, counting materials or collections of shapes are more versatile and encourage children’s own application. The ability to use manipulatives in diverse ways encourages greater opportunities for investigational and collaborative work, and subsequently leads to more purposeful mathematical dialogue and the development of logic and reason (Hansen,…

    • 2019 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Obstacles In Education

    • 1712 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Students who do not establish a solid foundation in mathematical concepts often carry these conceptual deficiencies into middle and high school (Nelson, 2014). Little (2009) noted that deficiencies in mathematical concepts usually emerge in elementary school “and continue as students’ progress through secondary school, typically performing over two grade levels behind their peers” (p. 3). Little attributed this phenomenon to poor mathematical instruction that covers too wide a scope of skills and concepts, causing the students to be unable “to achieve a sufficient conceptual understanding of the core concepts that underlie operations and algorithms” (p.3). Conceptual understanding is necessary for problem solving, and students are unable to be academically successful in mathematics without these…

    • 1712 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Teacher must be able to identify the gaps in their students’ subject matter knowledge. When doing so, the teacher should use their knowledge to help figure out what the students does and does not know. This should be done at the beginning of each…

    • 912 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    (2015). Week 5: Multiplicative thinking [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from Curtin University EDP243 Blackboard site. Jacob, L., & Willis, S. (2003). The development of multiplicative thinking in young children.…

    • 1323 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Brilliant Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The “zone of proximal development” to me is that of teaching someone something they did not know how to do, especially children. One of the teaching strategies from the article “Infants and Toddlers Exploring Mathematics” that demonstrate supporting a toddler within their zone of proximal development as the acquire knowledge of mathematics is that of “Helping a slice bananas for snack” (Geist, 2009,p.41) in where the teacher may use a plastic knife and do hand-over-hand with the toddler to cut the banana and as they slice they can count how many slices they made, then they can use other fruit, for example, apples, where they describe the two fruits as “These apples are hard and crunchy. The bananas are soft and mushy” (Geist, 2009, p.41)…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The concept of education is how to learn, understand material, and knowledge that is taken in. Through education certain values and beliefs are developed. These beliefs, habits, and skills shape a student’s character. There are two controlling factors that come into play when discussing the concept of education; one is the teacher and the other is the student. As illustrated in Richard Feynman’s article, “O Americano Outra Vez,” a student’s learning focus is overwhelmingly influenced by the teaching style they are subject too.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Strong subject knowledge is seen to be essential for effective teaching, Schulman, (1986,1987) Eraut,(1994), Turner-Bisset (2001).Throughout the processes of planning, assessment, differentiation or feedback, proficient subject knowledge is deemed vital. With the new National Curriculum, DfE.(2013) focusing strongly on the acquisition of knowledge, the need for teachers to sustain high levels of subject knowledge across the curriculum has never been more crucial. Demands on a teachers’ subject knowledge can be particularly challenging across the Primary curriculum, when practitioners are expected to have a substantial level of subject knowledge in all curriculum subjects. Alexander et al (1992, p.2) suggest that the level of subject knowledge…

    • 1680 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Maths and many of its aspect are a major part of everyday life. Literacy and numeracy are essential skills for all children to develop. Every child has different learning ability and therefore it will be a good idea to determine each child’s maths literacy level for them to succeed. The two theories of learning discussed are Behaviorism and Constructivism. According to the theory constructivism is best suited to the learning and teaching of maths over behaviorism.…

    • 1482 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Understanding Fractions

    • 1145 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Fractions Understanding a half When students begin learning about fractions, it is imperative that the educator starts by assessing the students understanding of what a half is. Based on the Australian Curriculum this often takes place in the Year One descriptor (ACMNA016), where it identifies that students are able to half an item and identify how it is an equal portion. Developing a understanding into how to halve an object so both parts are equal, play a vital role in understanding how fraction work, this is based on a half being the largest fraction before making a whole. A child can demonstrate a understanding by folding a piece of paper over onto itself to make half, but then also go on to describe that they are equal as they are equal…

    • 1145 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Emergent Maths Essay

    • 1918 Words
    • 8 Pages

    An emergent maths lessons starts with an open-ended maths problem in their level that allows children to simply explore and play with shapes and patterns in…

    • 1918 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Montessori Method Essay

    • 894 Words
    • 4 Pages

    As the Montessori preschool student moves closer and closer to having an abstraction way of learning, the need for the child to use the materials for a long time shortens. All Montessori math lessons are presented first with the materials, but the old child quickly moves from concrete materials to abstract ones. It is in this stage where practical use of mathematics is important. Montessori students for the age of six, enjoy learning how maths can fits in the grand scheme of the cosmic education. This includes studying ancient mathematicians such as Pythagoras, Euclid, Eratosthenes and…

    • 894 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays