Application of Sakamoto Math Method in Solving Mathematical Word Problems for Year 5 Pupils

Abstract

Mathematical word problem solving skills has always been a concern in Malaysia because pupils are unable to cope with the word problems given. Thus, Sakamoto Math method was introduced to deal with the pupils' difficulties in solving word problems. The purposes of this study were to investigate the effectiveness of using Sakamoto Math method and to compare the pupils' performance in solving word problems between the application of Sakamoto Math method and conventional method. In addition, comparison of pupils' attitude towards the application of Sakamoto Math method and conventional method in solving word problems was also investigated. Quantitative methods were employed in this study. Year 5 pupils in a Chinese elementary school (SJKC), Nusajaya, Johor were assigned as a control group and an experimental group with 33 participants in each group. All the participations took part in the pre-test and post-test and the results were analysed through inferential statistics which are Paired Samples T-test and Independent Samples T-test. Pupils' attitude was then recorded in the questionnaire and analysed by using Wilcoxon-Signed Ranked test. There was a significant difference on pupils' performance and pupils' attitude between the application of Sakamoto Math method and conventional method. It proves that Sakamoto Math method is effective in solving word problems. In conclusion, this study suggests that different visualization approaches could be prepared to overcome the pupils' difficulties in solving word problems.