The aim of this study was to investigate which factors teachers and special needs education teachers view as being the main causes of mathematical learning difficulties and from these choose how to educate pupils with these difficulties. The aim was also to investigate how this education is organised at two different schools. An interview based investigation addressed these objectives by using three comprehensive questions:Which factors do the teachers and special needs teachers view as being the main reasons for mathematical learning difficulties?How do teachers and special needs teachers educate pupils with mathematical learning difficulties?How is the education organised for pupils with mathematical learning difficulties at two different schools?This study is based on four interviews of three teachers and one special needs teacher. The people interviewed work at two different primary schools in the same local authority.

This is an empirical study of how the mathematical talk of adult learners constructs/reconstructs different mathematical discourses. The study is to be regarded as an attempt to develop a discursive approach within the field of mathematics education and to complicate the status of mathematics in education and in society in general. My theoretical underpinnings consist of three possible mathematical discourses ? coercive, regulative and emancipative mathematics. From a discursive psychology perspective, I let these discourses function as analytical interpretive repertoires in relation to the adult learners? rhetorical use of mathematics and their claiming of mathematical subject-positions, named the coerced, the self-regulating and the responsible mathematician.

The purpose of this study is to examine senior high school students? strategies and reasoning when solving mathematical problems and make a review of the concept problem solving. The purpose is also to examine if the students? choice of strategies are influenced when their mathematical knowledge is improved.The study was conducted in two science classes at a senior high school. All the students were asked to individually solve two mathematical problems.

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to find out what mathematical content primary school children encounter in their free options at school.Through observation, the study defines mathematical areas that primary school students encounter in their free options at school. We want the study to show the reader the mathematics that students continuously meet without associating it with regular mathematics as taught in school.A number of mathematical areas have been defined in the analysis of the observations. These areas have subsequently been discussed more thoroughly. Finally, the areas have been arranged in a grid system to clarify the results.In our study, we have discovered that mathematics exists in all the observed situations the students participated in.We believe that observation as a method can give teachers a tool for helping students associate practical actions during their free options with the more theoretical aspects of formal teaching of mathematics. We discuss this further in the study..

Empirical research shows that a possible reason why Swedish students mathematical knowledge deteriorates can be a too big focus on imitative reasoning, i.e. recalling solutions or follow algorithms, and a lack of creative mathematical reasoning, i.e. when a student construct his/her own solution and motivates its plausibility with mathematically well-founded arguments. The purpose of this study is therefore to examine if, and in what way, lecturers can provide students an opportunity to learn creative reasoning by simulating creativity in their presentations of examples. Six lectures were observed and 22 task situations were analyzed with respect to three aspects; reflection, plausibility and mathematical foundation, which are to be present in the situation if the reasoning will be seen as simulated creative.

Undersökningen beskriver den matematiska kommunikationen mellan speciallärare och matematiksvaga elever. Den empiriska datan består av två matematiklektioner från år 9 i grundskolan. Datan analyserades för att finna olika typer av kommunikation.Lärarna var i många delar medvetna i sitt sätt att kommunicera med eleverna och undervisningsmiljön kändes trygg. Under lektionerna observerades två parallella språk, ett vardagsanknutet och ett matematiskt språk. Det framkom att ett tydligt förhållningssätt beträffande matematiskt språk kan underlätta för elevens inlärning samt medvetandegöra läraren om den kommunikativa betydelsen i undervisningen med styrdokumentens mål i fokus. .

The objective of this study was to bring further knowledge to the subject as to what influences students motivation and self-esteem. The study had focus on role that the teachers play in these aspects. The study was done by using both a qualitative and quantitative approach. The qualitative method was interviews based on six interviews with two teachers and four students from two different classes. The quantitative method was a questionnaire study that was done in both classes.

 Title:              Not just words, classroom communication about subtraction in year 2Language:      Swedish with summary in English.Keywords:     Communication, mathematics, subtraction, teaching The purpose of this study is to analyze the mathematical communication in a classroom during a lesson in the field subtraction, and to find out how students describe their perception of mathematics that is communicated in the classroom.The study consists of the observations through the videotaping of two lessons in primary school grades 2 and student and teacher interviews related to these lecture occasions.Research indicates that Swedish pupils' mathematical skill continuously deteriorates in a national and international perspective, and that student experiences of mathematics in general are negative. The literature emphasizes the importance of communicating mathematics in various forms to deepen and develop understanding of concepts and mathematical operations. Communication must be generated between teachers and students but also between student and student to have a beneficial impact for the student.Our result demonstrate the different types of communication in the classroom but that communication does not always have a clear mathematical content in spite of teachers' mathematical intentions with teaching. The result also indicates that the mathematical communication that takes place, in essence, is a one-way communication where the teacher has a great opportunity to speak. The teachers perceived as oblivious to their own ways of communicating, but stressed in the interviews with an understanding of the importance of communication learning.

Concrete is a very common construction material. It´s characteristics are strength, durability and formablility. Superplasticizer is a common admixture, which changes the properties of concrete. Today (spring 2007) there are no certian mathematical methods to calculate the required percentage of this admixture needed to give the necessary set slump flow in the overall concrete recipe. Concrete batching companies must therefor experiment with different amount of superplasticizer in order to meet the specified slump and strength. The purpose og this report is to investigate if any mathematical relation can be established between the amount of superplasticizer used and the slump flow achieved. After carrying out some practical experiments using four different superplasticizers a direct relationship can be establish between the percentage of admixture used and the slump/flowability achieved. Unfortunatly at present due to the numerous variables, the calculation of mathematical formula can not be achieved..

The purpose of my study is to examine how four preschool teachers go about using the term play in children's early mathematical development. In order to fulfill the purpose of this study, I have the following questions:How the preschool teachers visualize mathematics in children?s play?What reflections have the preschool teachers about the importance of play for children's mathematical learning in preschool?How do the preschool teachers see on their own role in the children's play?In this study, I have conducted a semi-structured qualitative interviews based on the interviews with four preschool teachers from various departments in a preschool. I have also conducted some observations to complete my study. Whereas in my analysis of the researched material, I have used Vygotsky's theory.The survey shows that the preschool teachers are aware of the use of mathematical language and concepts in children?s different activities which were conducted daily in the preschool.

The contemporary angel-symbol is deeply rooted in our cultural history, with connotations and implications leading to that inner transitional space where all creative activity takes place. This essay investigates the history of the depiction of angels, visions of angels both ancient and modern, and includes psychological aspects of symbols as such. A closer look at surrounding symbols of angels will hopefully result in a greater understanding of the role of the angel-symbol within the context of visual culture, seen in the light of our own symbolic universe..

The starting point of this work has been to get knowledge about teachers working in a mathematical workshop with the students. I also wanted to investigate what students think about math, both within the workshop and in traditional teaching.To achieve this I chose to interview a teacher in charge within the framework of a mathematical workshop, and six students in the 5th grade. I also did a lesson observation with the purpose to see how well the teacher?s tutoring agrees with the results of the interview.In this study I have discovered that the lessons in the mathematical workshop are planned after what the students are working with in the textbook. The teacher opens the lessons with the whole class and then splits it up in groups.

The aim of this study is to identify and analyze the discourse within a gothic online community and examine how they use significant symbols to create themselves as goths and being part of a community. In order to achive this aim, eleven different forum threads were examined to amalyze how the goths created their significant symbols within the online community and through interaction with each other. The results implies that the discourse within the community describes the goths as either true or false goths and that it is important to maintain this boundary.

The purpose of this essay was to describe how individual members of the self-help group Al-Anon discuss the importance and the influence the group has/have concerning their own lifestyle and self-image. To find answer to this I carried out qualitative interviews with five female members of a local Al-Anon group and later on analyzed the interviews using various concepts based upon the symbolic interactionism. I have mainly used concepts as; role-taking, significant symbols and referencegroup. Through the analysis of the interviews I have seen that the respondents self-image and thereby also their self-esteem has changed since they became a part of their local Al-Anon group. I have also noticed changes in their behaviors in their way of life.

Syftet med denna empiriska studie är att undersöka hur lärare kan erbjuda möjligheter för 6-åringar att vidga sin förståelse av likhetstecknets innebörd. Undersökningen är inspirerad av Learning Study metoden vilket är en metod som har sin utgångspunkt i variationsteorin. Barnens initiala förmågor analyseras före planeringen av undervisningen och det ger en uppfattning om barnens kunskaper. Utifrån det planeras lektionerna och de aspekter som är de mest kritiska för barnen lyfts och på så sätt utvecklas deras kunskap. Vår slutsats är att det är viktigt att arbeta utifrån ett variationsinriktat lärandeperspektiv.