The Use of Variables in a Patterning Activity: Counting Dots

  • Bożena Maj-Tatsis University of Rzeszow
  • Konstantinos Tatsis University of Ioannina
Keywords: generalisation, patterning activity, variable

Abstract

The present paper examines a patterning activity that was organised within a teaching experiment in order to analyse the different uses of variables by secondary school students. The activity presented in the paper can be categorised as a pictorial/geometric linear pattern. We adopted a student-oriented perspective for our analysis, in order to grasp how students perceive their own generalising actions. The analysis of our data led us to two broad categories for variable use, according to whether the variable is viewed as a generalised number or not. Our results also show that students sometimes treat the variable as closely linked to a referred object, as a superfluous entity or as a constant. Finally, the notion of equivalence, which is an important step towards understanding variables, proved difficult for our students to grasp. 

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Published
2018-06-27
How to Cite
Maj-Tatsis, B., & Tatsis, K. (2018). The Use of Variables in a Patterning Activity: Counting Dots. Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal, 8(2), 55-70. https://doi.org/10.26529/cepsj.309