Location
Room 217
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explain how ninth grade mathematics students at a rural high school in Georgia constructed knowledge through student talk when problem solving using Kapur’s (2012) productive failure design. An embedded case study design was used to understand how a group of students constructed knowledge through their use of talk, persistence during the task, and use of prior knowledge while working on a productive failure modeled task. Triangulation resulted from the collected data from multiple sources, which included videotaping, interviewing, and analyzing student artifacts. Utilization of the constructivist perspectives of Vygotsky (1934/1962), Piaget (1971), and Freire (1970/2012) served as a framework for analyzing the data. Analysis of the findings resulted in an understanding of how students persisted during a productive failure-modeled task and revealed three main themes: (a) the group’s processes of interaction, (b) the roles the group members played during the task, and (c) the problem solving approaches the group utilized during the task. An interactive model of persistent problem solving was created to explain how the group utilized the three main themes in order to initiate their prior knowledge, chose different methods for solving, and persevered during the task.
Keywords
Productive failure, Mathematics, Constructivism, Problem-solving
Recommended Citation
Westbrook, Amy F. Dr., "A Case Study of How Ninth Grade Mathematics Students Construct Knowledge during a Productive Failure Model" (2014). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 63.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2014/2014/63
Proposal
6-25 Amy (1) printed final copy.docx (3720 kB)
Distinguished Paper Submission
Included in
Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Mathematics Commons, Science and Mathematics Education Commons
A Case Study of How Ninth Grade Mathematics Students Construct Knowledge during a Productive Failure Model
Room 217
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explain how ninth grade mathematics students at a rural high school in Georgia constructed knowledge through student talk when problem solving using Kapur’s (2012) productive failure design. An embedded case study design was used to understand how a group of students constructed knowledge through their use of talk, persistence during the task, and use of prior knowledge while working on a productive failure modeled task. Triangulation resulted from the collected data from multiple sources, which included videotaping, interviewing, and analyzing student artifacts. Utilization of the constructivist perspectives of Vygotsky (1934/1962), Piaget (1971), and Freire (1970/2012) served as a framework for analyzing the data. Analysis of the findings resulted in an understanding of how students persisted during a productive failure-modeled task and revealed three main themes: (a) the group’s processes of interaction, (b) the roles the group members played during the task, and (c) the problem solving approaches the group utilized during the task. An interactive model of persistent problem solving was created to explain how the group utilized the three main themes in order to initiate their prior knowledge, chose different methods for solving, and persevered during the task.
