Basic Algebra Revisited: A Study with 14-Year-Olds

This paper reports the results obtained with a group of 24 14-year-old pupils when presented with sits of 'algebra tasks by the Leeds Modelling System, LMS. Four months later, these same pupils were given a comparable paper-and-pencil test and detailed interviews. A comparison between these sets of results is presented. The results obtained on the paper-and-pencil test and the interviews were consistent, and show that the pupils had some profound misunderstandings of algebraic notation. Further, from the interviews it is possible. to determine. classes of strategies some pupils were using, namely: searching for solutions (ie substituting). applying a "global" rule, such as collecting ALL the numbers on one side, whether or not they were coefficients. Rag Moreover, this work further demonstrates the importance of interviews to interpret curious protocols. Current address: Heuristic Programming Project, Department of Computer Science. STANFORD University, CALIFORNIA 94305.