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“Concrete” Computer Manipulatives in Mathematics Education
Author(s) -
Sarama Julie,
Clements Douglas H.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
child development perspectives
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1750-8606
pISSN - 1750-8592
DOI - 10.1111/j.1750-8606.2009.00095.x
Subject(s) - affordance , mathematics education , sine qua non , psychology , educational research , empirical research , pedagogy , computer science , epistemology , cognitive psychology , linguistics , philosophy
Abstract— The use of “concrete manipulatives” in mathematics education is supported by research and often accepted as a sine qua non of “reform” approaches. This article reviews the research on the use of manipulatives and critiques common notions regarding concrete manipulatives. It presents a reformulation of the definition of concrete as used in educational psychology and educational research and provides a rationale of how, based on that reformulation, computer manipulatives may be pedagogically efficacious. The article presents 7 hypothesized, interrelated affordances of manipulatives and briefly reviews evidence for their empirical validity.