1. Language and Mathematics Dave Tout, ACER tout@acer.edu.au

2. Revisiting earlier And the CHALLENGE question: 7235 ÷ 5 = 2775 The lowest common denominator (LCD) is the denominator which contains a representative of factors of each of the denominators. To include all factors take the highest power of each different prime factor present. Interviewer: Do you know what volume means? Child: Yes Interviewer: Could you explain to me what it means? Child: Yes, it’s what is on the knob on the TV set.

3. The language of mathematics  Maths words are crucial to the understanding and learning of mathematics.  But often language use and meaning is not addressed, nor are teachers aware of the important role language plays.  Words and terminology can be difficult.

4. The language of mathematics  Words can be misunderstood, confusing and misleading and can lead students to a misunderstanding of mathematics.  The listening, reading, writing/recording and talking of maths (literacy) is important in the teaching and learning of numeracy.

5. Four operations OperationWords + – × ÷

6. The language of mathematics Maths words can be of three types:  1. Words that maintain their meaning in both maths and everyday use. Eg “take away”  2. Words that only have a mathematical usage and are not used in everyday contexts. Eg “isosceles”  3. Words that have different meanings in their maths and their everyday usage. Eg “volume”, “odd”

7. The language of mathematics Which category are the words in? Work in small groups to classify them.  1. Words that maintain their meaning in both maths and everyday use.  2. Words that only have a mathematical usage and are not used in everyday contexts.  3. Words that have different meanings in their maths and their everyday usage.

8. Co-operative logic problems Co-operative logic problems:  encourages maths talk  encourages sharing of knowledge and understanding  enables the teacher to observe the skills and knowledge of students  supports problem solving skills and teamwork too  Fun too!

9. Strategies  Introduce words and terms you are going to use. Have a class discussion. Ask students to research them and then discuss as a group.  Encourage maths talk with small group activities and work  Keep word lists  Play games  Do word finds/cross words,/cloze activities

10. Some references  Australian Bureau of Statistics, (2007) Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey: Summary results, Australia (cat. no. 4228.0), Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra  Bynner, John & Parsons, Samantha (2005) Does numeracy matter more?, National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy (NRDC), London  Bynner, John & Parsons, Samantha (1997) Does numeracy matter? Evidence from the National Child Development Study on the impact of poor numeracy on adult life, Basic Skills Agency, London  FitzSimons, G., Mlcek, S., Hull, O. & Wright, C. 2005, Learning numeracy on the job: A case study of chemical handling and spraying, NCVER, Adelaide.  Gleeson, Lynne, 2005, Economic returns to education and training for adults with low numeracy skills, NCVER, Adelaide.  Hartley, Robyn & Horne, Jackie, (2006) Social and economic benefits of improved adult literacy: Towards a better understanding, National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), Adelaide  Marr, Beth & Hagston, Jan, (2007) Thinking beyond numbers: Learning numeracy for the future workplace, NCVER, Adelaide.  Marr, Beth; Helme. Sue & Tout, Dave, (2003) Rethinking assessment: strategies for holistic adult numeracy assessment. A resource book for practitioners, policy-makers, researchers and teachers, Language Australia, Melbourne 2003  Tout, Dave, (1991) ‘Language and Maths’ in Marr, Beth; Helme. Sue & Tout, Dave, Breaking the Maths Barrier, Department of Employment, Education and Training, Canberra  Tout, Dave & Motteram, Gary, (2006) Foundation Numeracy in Context, ACER Press, Camberwell, Victoria

11. Questions