An analysis of the effectiveness of alternative systems approaches and instructional methods for teaching the metric system
01 Jan 1976-
About: The article was published on 1976-01-01 and is currently open access. It has received 13 citations till now. The article focuses on the topics: Metric system.
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TL;DR: In this paper, a measurement test with 14 questions was administered to prospective science teachers in order to examine their knowledge of and difficulties with metric unit conversion, and their major difficulties were mainly related to the conversion from gram into microgram, mg into g and ml into cm 3, dm 3 into mm 3, gigameter into nanometer, mm 2 into m 2, and determining the relation between centigram and dekagram.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to examine prospective science teachers’ knowledge of and difficulties with metric unit conversion The participants of the study were 73 senior prospective science teachers In this qualitative study, a measurement test with 14 questions was administered to the participants in order to examine their knowledge of and difficulties with unit conversion The questions of the test were related to metric measurement units for length, area, volume, and mass as well as to the knowledge of approximate size of a body and some uses of metric units For the first 11 questions, participants’ answers were evaluated as right or wrong In order to examine the reasons lying behind their difficulties, their explanations on the last 3 open-ended questions were analyzed The findings indicated that prospective teachers’ performance on unit conversion was not satisfying in general, and their major difficulties were mainly related to the conversion from gram into microgram, mg into g and ml into cm 3 , dm 3 into mm 3 , gigameter into nanometer, mm 2 into m 2 , and to determining the relation between centigram and dekagram The implications for the field are discussed in light of the related literature
8 citations
Cites background from "An analysis of the effectiveness of..."
...Cheng (1976) defined a measurement system as a tool for communication and added that this system was necessary for people to communicate in business, industry, and/or daily life....
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...Measurement Cheng (1976) defined a measurement system as a tool for communication and added that this system was necessary for people to communicate in business, industry, and/or daily life....
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Journal Article•
TL;DR: StreStreeter as mentioned in this paper is a short treatise concerned with the metric system, but also contains arithmetical principles, problems and formulæ, and an appendix on the common chemical reactions.
Abstract: THIS short treatise is not only concerned with the metric system, but also contains “certain arithmetical principles, problems and formulæ, and an appendix on the common chemical reactions.” The arithmetical contents may be useful as a supplement to ordinary books on arithmetic, but the statement of chemical reactions is “cram,” pure and simple.The Metric System of Weights and Measures.By G. T. P. Streeter Pp. 43. (London: Gee and Co., 1896.)
3 citations
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151 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a measurement test with 14 questions was administered to prospective science teachers in order to examine their knowledge of and difficulties with metric unit conversion, and their major difficulties were mainly related to the conversion from gram into microgram, mg into g and ml into cm 3, dm 3 into mm 3, gigameter into nanometer, mm 2 into m 2, and determining the relation between centigram and dekagram.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to examine prospective science teachers’ knowledge of and difficulties with metric unit conversion The participants of the study were 73 senior prospective science teachers In this qualitative study, a measurement test with 14 questions was administered to the participants in order to examine their knowledge of and difficulties with unit conversion The questions of the test were related to metric measurement units for length, area, volume, and mass as well as to the knowledge of approximate size of a body and some uses of metric units For the first 11 questions, participants’ answers were evaluated as right or wrong In order to examine the reasons lying behind their difficulties, their explanations on the last 3 open-ended questions were analyzed The findings indicated that prospective teachers’ performance on unit conversion was not satisfying in general, and their major difficulties were mainly related to the conversion from gram into microgram, mg into g and ml into cm 3 , dm 3 into mm 3 , gigameter into nanometer, mm 2 into m 2 , and to determining the relation between centigram and dekagram The implications for the field are discussed in light of the related literature
8 citations
TL;DR: The introduction of the metric system in the United States was summarized in an old cartoon as discussed by the authors, with the question "Why on earth don't we adopt the Metric System if it's so much better?" The answer is "Why, just because we never did, my dear!" It is unlikely that any simpler explanation, enigmatic yet revealing, could be given to summarize the introduction of metric system.
Abstract: JLhe wife's query in an old cartoon gets right to the point: "Well, why on earth don't we adopt the metric system if it's so much better?" The husband's response is equally direct: "Why, just because we never did, my dear!" It is unlikely that any simpler explanation, enigmatic yet revealing, could be given to summarize the introduction of the metric system in the United States. One should not be surprised that this cartoon first appeared over twenty-five years ago (Committee on the Metric System 1948, p. 4). It could have appeared twenty-five or fifty years before that. And twenty-five years from now, will proponents for the increased use of a system still uncommon in the United States point in similar futility to this same cartoon? There is evidence to the contrary. This brief paper will endeavor to give teachers of mathematics some of the rele-
3 citations
"An analysis of the effectiveness of..." refers background in this paper
...Hallerberg (1973) listed the major activities of recent...
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