Needs Analysis: Integer Operations
Discussion of Instructional Problem In Missouri, students are to know how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide all rational numbers (including negative numbers) by the end of their seventh-grade year. In the school which I teach, many students have not mastered this skill when they enter their eighth-grade Pre-algebra course. This lack of mastery creates a difficult situation for students when learning slope, multi-step equations, and calculating sums and products in scientific notation. Mastery of rational operations will help students succeed in Pre-Algebra and future math courses.
The class I am focusing on for this study is a class of twelve students. Out of the twelve students, nine are below
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These two contributing factors combined create a deficit in the students’ knowledge when it comes to many skills including integer operations.
Comparison of Conditions
Current condition. Students struggle to understand what the negative sign means in front of a number. Also, they cannot perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division with positive and negative numbers. Currently, only 4 out of 12 students (33%) are showing mastery of integer operations. Mastery on this skill is defined in my school as a 90% or better.
Desired condition. The desired result is for 80% or more (10 out of 12) students reaching mastery on integer operations. Mastery on this skill is defined in my school as a 90% or better. Students with IEP support will reach this mastery with those built-in supports (i.e. reading support on quiz/ test).
Data Collection Process
Discussion of Data Collection Instruments Used I collected data on my students from two different sources. The first was a standardized test we give all students at the beginning of the year as a benchmark to see growth for each student. The second was an integer quiz given to my class to see specific areas where students were making mistakes.
Discussion of Sources of Data The standardized test provides teachers with general information such as grade equivalent and percentage rank for each
Based on data from student work samples, benchmark assessments, classroom tests and quizzes, John is able to solve basic multiplication facts with 100% accuracy. He can solve basic division facts with 92% accuracy. John can subtract numbers to the hundred thousands place with regrouping and across zeros with 90% accuracy. He can solve 2 digit by 1 digit multiplication problems with 85% accuracy, 3 digit by 1 digit multiplication problems with 95% accuracy and 4 digit by 1 digit multiplication problems with 90% accuracy. He can solve 2 digit by 2 digit multiplication problems with 85% accuracy. He can solve 3 digit by 1-digit division problems with 83% accuracy. He can identify the correct operation used to solve a word problem with 82% accuracy.
Multiplicative thinking, fractions and decimals are important aspects of mathematics required for a deep conceptual understanding. The following portfolio will discuss the key ideas of each and the strategies to enable positive teaching. It will highlight certain difficulties and misconceptions that children face and discuss resources and activities to help alleviate these. It will also acknowledge the connections between the areas of mathematics and discuss the need for succinct teaching instead of an isolated approach.
In order to improve my instructional practices, I analyzed instructional data from district math diagnostic and proficiency assessments. The most recent assessment assessed student’s abilities to count, add and subtract, and their understanding of place value. My students scored below not only the other first grade students at the school, but also all first grade students in the district. 81.6% of my students could count, read, and write numbers to 120. This was an improvement from their diagnostic assessment. However, only 66.7% could relate counting to addition and subtraction, and only 45% demonstrated understanding of place value in two digit numbers.
First, Standardized tests help show teachers what they need to teach students. Throughout the years' standardized test that students take to follow the when they go to the next grade. By the test tracking students, it shows the teacher what they need the students to learn to get to the next level or get better. According to source B,"Standardized test also help show the students progress, growth, and what the students have learned. By showing the students progress and growth it helps determine if the student should go on to the next grade or stay behind. Theses things provide an accurate comparison between groups." This tells is that without these types of tests, it would be difficult to measure student achievement in different subjects.
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What will happen if a nuclear bomb explodes during the Cold War? Will the world be set on track to chaos? The answer to these two questions can be found in the 60’s classic, a movie that depicts an imaginary nuclear war between the USSR and the USA, Dr. Strangelove (1964). Direted by Stanley Kubrick and filmed during the height of the Cold War, Dr. Strangelove is a political satire that reflects the tension between the two superpowers at the time through its satirical plot and ironical lines. On the surface, Dr. Strangelove conveys how the explosion of a nuclear bomb triggers a chain of hilarious reactions from the two superpowers.
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In the play “Muriel’s Wedding”, ideas of self-worth and one’s identity are explored and expressed throughout the plot, dialogue and characters. Self-worth and one’s identity is explored in greater detail in scene one, scene sixty-one and scene eighty, eighty-one, eighty-two. These scenes further explore Muriel’s character and her personal growth as Muriel searches for her own identity.
Traumatic injury is a major contributor to total global burden of disease, and has a serious impact on health and quality of life. Each year in the US, approximately 2.5 million individuals incur injuries so severe that they require acute care hospital admissions (Bonnie et al., 1999). Richmond et al. (2002) found that 90% of a sample of seriously injured older adults survived, which indicates that outcomes beyond survival—such as acute stress reactions and the potential to develop PTSD must be evaluated and addressed for this patient population in the clinical setting. Adults who sustain serious injuries may experience acute stress reactions immediately following the event, and during and after inpatient hospitalization, and
Algebra is a critical aspect of mathematics which provides the means to calculate unknown values. According to Bednarz, Kieran and Lee (as cited in Chick & Harris, 2007), there are three basic concepts of simple algebra: the generalisation of patterns, the understanding of numerical laws and functional situations. The understanding of these concepts by children will have an enormous bearing on their future mathematical capacity. However, conveying these algebraic concepts to children can be difficult due to the abstract symbolic nature of the math that will initially be foreign to the children. Furthermore, each child’s ability to recall learned numerical laws is vital to their proficiency in problem solving and mathematical confidence. It is obvious that teaching algebra is not a simple task. Therefore, the importance of quality early exposure to fundamental algebraic concepts is of significant importance to allow all
Teaching students effectively in areas of multiplicative thinking, fractions and decimals requires teachers to have a true understanding of the concepts and best ways to develop students understanding. It is also vital that teachers understand the importance of conceptual understanding and the success this often provides for many students opposed to just being taught the procedures (Reys et al., ch. 12.1). It will be further looked at the important factors to remember when developing a solid conceptual understanding and connection to multiplicative thinking, fractions and decimals.
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