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Take Time for Action: Assessing Geometric and Measurement Understanding Using Manipulatives
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2001
Year
GeometryMathematics CognitionTask AnalysisGeometry Benefits StudentsEducationCognitionHuman Performance ModelingNctm 2000School MathematicsSocial SciencesAssessing GeometricMathematics EducationStudent LearningNumerical CompetenceCognitive ScienceDesignMeasurement ModelsHuman-computer InteractionSpatial CognitionSecondary Mathematics Education
Studying geometry benefits students in a number of ways. Geometry enables students to represent and make sense of the world, analyze and solve problems, and represent abstract symbols pictorially to facilitate understanding (NCTM 2000). Similarly, measurement establishes important connections between school mathematics and everyday life. However, students often have very little understanding of geometry and measurement concepts (Martin and Strutchens, in press). More often than not, students are asked to memorize geometric properties rather than to experience geometry through nature walks or worthwhile tasks that involve hands-on explorations. Further, students learn measurement through memorizing formulas rather than exploring the underlying concepts.