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The use of mathematical competencies in mathematical tasks (PhD project) (completed)

The overarching aim of this PhD project is to investigate the use of different types of mathematical competencies when solving mathematical tasks.

What is the role of mathematical competencies in solving tasks? Illustration pho: colourbox.

What is the role of mathematical competencies in solving tasks? Illustration photo: colourbox.

About the project

The recent years, the notion of competence has gained an increased focus in mathematics education both internationally, but also in Norway, and the Norwegian mathematics curriculum describes a general and complex mathematical competence as a necessity for being an active citizen in a democratic society. In the subject of mathematics, teaching and learning is closely related to engagement in tasks, and developing and assessing students’ mathematical competence depends largely on to types of tasks in which they engage. However, little research exists on the role of mathematical competencies in solving tasks.

Methods and data

The study looks at different aspects related to the use of mathematical competencies when solving mathematical tasks including teachers’ use of an item analysis scheme for recognising the competency demands of tasks, to what extent the mathematical competency demands can explain the difficulty of assessment tasks, and the types of tasks that teachers use to challenge high-achieving students. The study uses both quantitative and qualitative methods and is based on data from the PISA study, a Norwegian grade 10 mathematics exam, teachers’ analysis of tasks and tasks used in mathematics teaching.

Funding and research group.

The project is a four-year doctoral research project (2014–2018), financed by the Department of Teacher Education and School Research at the University of Oslo. The project is part of the research group LEA: Large-scale Educational Assessment.

Published Feb. 16, 2022 8:59 PM - Last modified Feb. 16, 2022 9:00 PM

Contact

Andreas Pettersen

Supervisor: Guri Nortvedt (ILS)
Co-supervisor: Johan Braeken (CEMO)