A Comparision of Different Grade Students’ Transition Levels from Arithmetic to Algebra: A Case for ‘Equation’ Subject

Abstract

In understanding mathematics which gets more abstract with grades, transition from arithmetic to algebra plays an important role for elementary school students. The aim of this study is to compare the transition levels from arithmetic to algebra for students at different grades by evaluating their problem solving strategies related to the determined problems on ‘equation’ subject. With this aim, categories of solution strategies of problems used in this study were firstly defined by help of the related literature. Then, by evaluating students’ use of the solution strategies associated with problems, their transition levels from arithmetic to algebra were decided. Within a case study research methodology, the study was carried out with two cohort schools in a district of the Eastern Karadeniz Region of Turkey in the fall semester of 2006‐2007. The sample consists of totally 240 students drawn from Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7 and Grade 8 whose distributions are equal (60 students for each grade). As a consequence, it was elicited that there was positive tendency for transition level from arithmetic to algebra with an increase in student grade. However, because of the limited solution strategies used in learning environments, it was drawn out that none of the grades showed the expected transition.