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Spreadsheets as cognitive tools: A study of the impact of spreadsheets on problem solving of math story problems

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Abstract

In this study, we investigated the impact of computer spreadsheets on the problem solving practices of students for math story problems, and more specifically on the transition from arithmetic to algebraic reasoning, through the construction of algebraic expressions. We investigated the relationships among the students’ prior knowledge and skills, the verification processes, and the effectiveness of the problem solving tasks. For identifying the factors involved in the problem solving process and their role, in our analysis we employed the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach. We mainly focused on math story problems and on students of tertiary education with little prior experience on the use of computers and spreadsheets. Analysis of the data indicates that spreadsheets can support the transition from arithmetic to algebraic reasoning and this transition is influenced by prior skills of the students relevant to the interaction with the interface (enter formula skills), and the students’ frequency of verification of the solution.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the students of the Department of Educational Sciences and Early Childhood Education of the University of Patras for their participation in this study, and the anonymous reviewers for their very constructive and insightful comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Educational Sciences and Early Childhood Education, University of Patras, 26500 , Rion, Patras, Greece

    Kostas Lavidas & Vasilis Komis

  2. Department of Early Childhood Education, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 1st floor, Ippokratous 35, 10680, Athens, Greece

    Vasilis Gialamas

Authors
  1. Kostas Lavidas
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  2. Vasilis Komis
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  3. Vasilis Gialamas
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Correspondence to Vasilis Komis.

Appendix

Appendix

Table of the analysis results

Table 1 Standardized direct, indirect and total effects of pruned model
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Table 2 Regression weights and standardized weights (pruned model).
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Lavidas, K., Komis, V. & Gialamas, V. Spreadsheets as cognitive tools: A study of the impact of spreadsheets on problem solving of math story problems. Educ Inf Technol 18, 113–129 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-011-9174-8

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