Math practice at home: A factor that positively influences the ability to solve non-routine mathematical problems?
Abstract
The difficulty in solving math problems across all grades not only is well-known in Greek schools, but also to all over the world. This empirical quantitative research will attempt to check whether practice routine math problems plays a positive role in effectively solving these problems. Twenty-five students from ninth-grade (students 14–15 years old) of a public school asked to solve one non-routine problem similar to PISA's math problems. Then, after collecting the tests, the students who solved it in an acceptable manner identified as strong solvers, while those who did not solve it were identified as weak solvers. Questionnaires were then administered in order to find out the hours that the students spend solving math problems at home while their grades in Mathematics were filled out by the teachers. Using the SPSS statistical package, appropriate statistical measurements were conducted that showed practice is an important factor in effectively solving routine problems.
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