Analyzing the Performance of Upper Elementary and High School Students in Activities Involving Fractions and Associated Ideas

Abstract

This article presents partial results of a broader study. Here we try to identify how to show the performance of students in problem-solving activities including the ideas associated with fractions, as a function of their level of education. Six hundred and thirty students participated in this research, with an average of ninety per grade, all from the public school system in Pernambuco. The instrument consisted of 10 items including three ideas associated with fractions (part-whole, quotient and operator), varying the type of quantity involved (discretes and continuous). The results show differences in behavior of fifth and sixth grade students when they are asked to vary the type of quantity and the idea of fraction involved in an item. It also was possible to observe that the types of errors made by students present a certain stability with the development of education. Keywords: Mathematics Education. Fraction. Idea of Fraction. Equivalence.