The mathematics learning based on realistic mathematics to improve the mathematical representation ability in elementary school

Abstract

The ability of mathematical representation is one of the crucial aspects for students However, the learning materials for elementary school students was limited. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of mathematics learning materials based on the realistic mathematics approach to improve the representation ability of elementary students. This research was conducted by developing learning material that is valid, practical, and effective. This paper only discussed the results of the effectiveness test. Participants of this study were 20 students at Year 5 from one of primary school at Banda Aceh, Indonesia. The research instrument in this study was a test of students’ mathematical representation abilities. The results showed that 1) the average score of student on-task activities is accounted for 90.06%; 2) the average activity of students shows above 90%; 3) there is an increase in the tendency of formative test scores at each meeting; 4) more than 50% of students give a positive response to the teaching-learning materials developed; and 5) the teacher provides a positive response to the teaching-learning materials developed. Since the developed learning materials satisfied 5 of the 6 effectiveness indicators, then the learning materials developed using realistic mathematics approach meet the effectiveness criteria.