THE EFFECTS OF REALISTIC MATHEMATICS EDUCATION ON STUDENTS' ACHIEVEMENT AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS MATHEMATICS ON INTEGER OPERATIONS

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya

Study investigates how Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) influences 7th grade students’ achievement in integer operations and their attitudes toward mathematics, while also examining learners’ views on the RME approach. The research involves 11 students using an exploratory sequential mixed design, including a one-group pre-test/post-test quantitative component and a qualitative case study. Achievement is measured with an open-ended test and an attitude scale, supported by interviews and student diaries.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages15

Reading Time38 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Realistic Mathematics Education background

Learning process and student engagement

Attitudes toward mathematics and curriculum relevance

Prior studies on RME effects

THE EFFECTS OF REALISTIC MATHEMATICS EDUCATION ON STUDENTS' ACHIEVEMENT AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS MATHEMATICS ON INTEGER OPERATIONS Ezgi GÜBBÜK, Tuğba UYGUN Abstract. The aim of this study is to examine the effects of Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) on 7th grade students' achievement on integer operations and their attitudes towards mathematics and to determine students' views about the RME approach. The research was carried out with the participation of 11 students. Exploratory sequential mixed design was used. In the quantitative part of the research, one group pre-test-post-test design as one of the weak experimental designs was used. On the other hand, case study was used in the qualitative part. In the research, the achievement test consisting of 10 open-ended questions prepared by the researcher and the mathematics attitude scale developed by the Department of Education Research and Development (EARGED) were used as quantitative data sources. On the other hand, semi-structured interview form developed by the researcher and student diaries were collected as qualitative data sources. Also, they were asked to write a diary in which they expressed their opinions about the activities in each week, and interviews were held within 3 weeks after the application had been completed. As a result of the research, it was observed that Realistic Mathematics Education increased the students' achievement and positively affected their attitudes towards mathematics. Key words: Attitudes towards Mathematics, Mathematics achievement, Operations on Integers, Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) . 1. Introduction According to Freudenthal (1991), mathematics lessons should guide students to rediscover mathematics through their own experiences. Within the framework of this thought, Hans Freudenthal laid the foundations of Realistic Mathematics Education (RME), a field-specific educational theory in the 1970s, in order to improve mathematics education. This understanding put forward by Freudenthal has been accepted in many countries such as England, Germany, Japan, America, Denmark (Cansız, 2015; Dickinsonn & Eade, 2006; Erdoğan, 2018; Ersoy, 2013; Kaylak, 2014 ; Korkmaz & Tutak, 2017; Korkmaz & Korkmaz, 2017; Okuyucu & Bilgin, 2019; Özdemir, 2008; Üzel, 2007) . According to the RME approach, the process of learning and teaching mathematics is a kind of social activity in which students engage in mathematical conversations both individually and among each other while trying to find solutions to problems (Akyüz, 2010) . The education process supported by RME attracts the attention of students because it includes problems from their own lives and enables them to actively participate in learning by using the knowledge they have. In addition, it is observed that thereis parallelism between the teaching process ofthe RME approach and the teaching processes mentioned in the mathematics curriculum. Therefore, it is thought that RME approach can be used actively in the mathematics learning and teaching process. RME is interested in how mathematics should be learned by children, sees mathematics as a kind of human activity (Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen & Lin F.L., 2001), as well as using, developing and applying various mathematical concepts and tools to solve the problem situations of individuals from daily life, in short, by discovering their own unique ways. They defend what they learn when they produce (Akyüz, Stephan, & Dixon. 2012; Çetin, 2018; Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, 2003). According to RME approach, the basis of mathematics education is the informal knowledge that students have, their previous experiences and strategies. The students learn mathematics when they create mathematical concepts themselves and adapt them to their daily lives (Kayhan Altay, Kurt Erhan, & Batı, 2020) . This approach argues that learning should take place from concrete to abstract, and that problem solving is not instructive after definitions and formulas

FAQs

What is the purpose of this study?

To examine the effects of Realistic Mathematics Education on 7th grade students’ achievement in integer operations and their attitudes toward mathematics, and to determine students’ views about the RME approach.

How was the research conducted?

The study used an exploratory sequential mixed design with 11 participants, including a quantitative one-group pre-test/post-test component and a qualitative case study component.

What data sources were used to evaluate outcomes?

Quantitative data used a researcher-prepared achievement test with 10 open-ended questions and a mathematics attitude scale, while qualitative data used semi-structured interviews and student diaries collected during and shortly after the application.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya