Exploring Gender Differences in Solving Open-Ended Mathematical Problems / Jinfa Cai.

Open-ended tasks were used to examine gender differences in complex mathematical problem solving. The results of this study suggest that, overall, males perform better than females, but the gender differences vary from task to task. A qualitative analysis of student responses to those tasks with gen...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Cai, Jinfa, 1963-
Language:English
Published: [Place of publication not identified] : Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse, 1995.
Subjects:
Cognitive Processes.
Elementary School Students.
Grade 6.
Intermediate Grades.
Interviews.
Mathematics Education.
Problem Solving.
Sex Differences.
Reports, Research.
Speeches/Meeting Papers.
Genre:
Reports, Research.
Speeches/Meeting Papers.
Physical Description:9 pages
Format: Microfilm Book
Description
Summary:
Open-ended tasks were used to examine gender differences in complex mathematical problem solving. The results of this study suggest that, overall, males perform better than females, but the gender differences vary from task to task. A qualitative analysis of student responses to those tasks with gender differences showed that male and female students exhibited many similarities in their solution processes, such as making similar types of mathematical errors and using similar strategies and representations. This study suggests not only the complexity of the issue of gender differences, but also the feasibility and usefulness of using open-ended tasks to explore the issue. Contains 13 references. (Author/MKR)
Note:ERIC Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (17th, Columbus, OH, October 21-24, 1995). For entire conference proceedings, see SE 057 177.
Microform.
Call Number:ED389586 Microfiche
Reproduction Note:
Microfiche. [Washington D.C.]: ERIC Clearinghouse microfiches : positive.