The rules for order of operations are important to students in numerical computation, simplifying algebraic expressions, evaluating formulas, writing proofs, solving equations, and success on standardized tests. Errors in evaluating expressions that require knowledge of this topic are often found at middle and high school. Moreover, pilot testing revealed that college students also committed such errors. Some students made errors that were consistent with an incorrect interpretation of the My Dear Aunt Sally mnemonic. / A few scholars have given careful thought to order of operations. However, many students, teachers and texts have given little attention to this topic. Microcomputers can give students appreciation and motivation for studying conventions. The fact that some of these rules are built into microcomputers allows students to investigate them with rich and varied activities enhanced by immediate feedback. / This study has shown that the time ordinarily used in teaching these conventions may not be adequate. A questionnaire revealed that most students had only one class period studying the topic. / Since students had exhibited definite weaknesses on grouping conventions and since the use of computers employ such conventions, a study was done to determine the effectiveness of using microcomputers in teaching this topic. The study involved 132 students at three high schools in Florida. The experimental group was taught the conventions with the aid of microcomputers. The control group was taught the conventions through traditional teaching methods without the use of microcomputers. / The results of the experiment showed that the experimental group performed significantly better than the control group. The experimental group scored significantly higher (.05) than the control group on achievement, retention, and transfer. / During the pilot study a new difficulty related to conventions was noticed. Expressions that involved numerals repeated in certain ways, "special numerals," were missed with high frequency. The study showed that the whole group of subjects (experimental and control) performed significantly worse at evaluating these special numeral expressions as opposed to the regular expressions. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 48-02, Section: A, page: 0290. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1987.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76011 |
| Contributors | AL-GHAMDI, YOUSIF ABDULLAH SANAD., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 298 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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