ANALYSIS OF THE THIRD GRADE STUDENTS’ ATTITUDE ON TRAINING WITH GEOMETRY VARIOUS PROBLEMS

Abstract

In primary school, geometry is an integral part of mathematics education. The main purpose of teaching geometry in primary school is to give pupils a clear and correct idea of some geometric shapes and their basic properties; to develop spatial concepts, logical thinking and imagination; to instil knowledge, skills and habits in drawing and measuring, which have great practical relevance, thereby preparing them successfully for the teaching of geometry in subsequent years. Geometric knowledge introduced to primary school pupils is abstract and must, in addition to having an educational nature, be tailored to the pupils’ age-specific characteristics, in particular the dominance of concrete thinking in their young minds. The process of teaching mathematics in the third grade must be based on rich visual and practical examples, enabling pupils to get involved in different types of activities. In the course of this process, the teacher needs to set aside time and space for independent work not only in lessons where the aim is to consolidate and summarise what was taught, but also when the pupils are learning new knowledge. Individual and group learning activities should also be widely used. The challenge facing modern teachers is to prepare pupils for their social realisation. Pupils should find the material interesting and thought-provoking in order to develop their creativity, enabling them seek and find non-standard solutions in life. This paper presents an analysis of the response of third grade pupils to teaching using the author’s various problems and geometry exercises. There are 104 problems (31 introductory problems and 73 confirmatory problems) divided into eleven topics that only include geometry problems and exercises. Those problems and exercises complement the geometry teaching material included in the third grade curriculum. In the school year of 2016/2017, 149 third grade pupils from three schools in Sofia and two in smaller towns participated in lessons involving the various geometry problems. After solving problems on a specific topic, the pupils were given a self-assessment card to complete at the end of the lesson. Here will be presented the pupils’ answers and how they evaluated their work in solving the problems and exercises assigned to them.