5th and 8th grade pupils’ and teachers’ perceptions of the relationships between teaching methods, classroom ethos, and positive affective attitudes towards learning mathematics in Japan

Practical
Work

• It promotes pupils’ understanding of the curriculum (5^th 40%; 8^th 25%).

• It develops pupils’ mathematical ideas (5^th 35%; 8^th 25%).

• It promotes pupils’ interests in mathematics learning (5^th 15%; 8^th 17%).

• It links pupils’ mathematics classes and everyday life (5^th 25%).

• It encourages a wide range of pupils’ positive involvement (5^th 15%)._____________

• It cannot develop pupils’ abstract concepts (5^tlη 25%; 8^th 25%).

• It cannot promote pupils’ understanding effectively (5^th 20%; 8^th 17%).

• It is difficult to adopt this method due to time constraint (5^th 15%; 8^th 25%).

» Not all of the pupils are interested in this method (5^th 10%)._______________________

Using a
computer

• It promotes pupils’ understanding visually (5^th 25%; 8^th 17%).

• It promotes pupils’ interest, enjoyment and motivation (5^th 15%; 8^th 25%).

• It meets pupils’ individual needs (5^th 5%; 8^th 8%).

• It is applicable to a wider curriculum (8^th 17%)._____________________________________

• It lacks teacher-pupil and pupil-pupil interaction (5^th 10%; 8^th 17%).

• Not all of the pupils are interested in this method (5^th 10%; 8^th 17%).

• Pupils are unfamiliar with using a computer (5^th 25%; 8^th 17%).

• Teachers do not have enough teaching skills on CAI (5^th 15%; 8^th 8%).

• It is difficult to adopt this method due to lack of resources (5^tt145%; 8^th 33%).

Reading a
textbook

• Teachers can use it as the main resource for lessons (5^th 45%; 8^th 17%).

• Pupils can remind themselves about procedures (5^th 15%; 8^th 25%).

• Pupils can confirm the findings of exploratory learning (5^th 30%; 8^th 8%).

» It releases teachers from preparation of materials (5^th 10%)._____________________

• Textbooks are difficult for pupils to understand (5^th 25%; 8^th 42%).

• It hinders pupils’ independent thinking (5^th 30%; 8^th 17%).

• Reading a textbook is not enjoyable (5^th 25%).___________________________________

Teacher
explanation

• It promotes pupils’ understanding of the curriculum (5^th 25%; 8^th 25%).

• Interactions promote pupils’ affective attitudes (5^th 20%; 8^th 17%).

« It gives pupils opportunities of being approved (5^th 15%; 8^th 17%).________________

• It reduces the opportunities of pupils’ autonomous learning (5^th 10%).

» It cannot satisfy pupils’ individual needs (8^th 25%)._________________________________

Individual
learning

• Pupils can learn according to individual needs (5^th 40%; 8^th 58%).

• Teachers can meet individual needs, especially for low achievers (5^th 50%; 8^th
67%).

• It clarifies pupil’s mastery level (5^th 30%; 8^th 42%).

• It consolidates pupils’ mastery (5^th 25%; 8^th 25%)._______________________________

• It lacks interaction with peers (5^th 15%).

» It works on low achievers’ affective attitudes negatively (5^th 35%). _______________

Whole-class
discussion

• It develops pupils’ mathematical concepts through interaction (5^th 50%; 8^th
42%),___________________________________________________________________

• It is beneficial only for pupils feeling able to put forward their views (5^th 25%).

Group
discussion

• Closer interaction promotes pupils’ understanding (5^,h 30%; 8^th 17%).

• Pupils learn how to communicate with peers (5^tlη 25%).

> Pupils feel more able to raise views than in a whole-class (5^th 20%; 8^th 17%).

• It cannot develop pupils’ mathematical concepts effectively (5^th 20%; 8^th 25%).

• Teachers’ supervision might not be available to each group (5^th 20%; 8^th 17%).

• It may hinder pupils’ individual thinking (5^th 15%).

• It is difficult to adopt this method due to time constraint (8^th 25%)._________________