Meanings of the natural number in Mexican textbooks: a descriptive analysis

Abstract

The research aims to characterize the pretended meaning for the treatment of natural number, in math textbooks corresponding to the first three grades of Primary Education in Mexico. For task analysis are used theoretical and methodological elements of the Onto-Semiotic Approach and Math Instruction (OSA), specifically related to epistemic configuration and the math activity analysis level. The results show differences between the three courses, in terms of the presence of the natural numbers meanings. In first grade, the tasks presented allude the meaning of numerical sequence, cardinal, ordinal and operational. In second grade, the tasks presented allude the meaning symbolic, cardinal, numerical sequence and operational. Finally, in third grade, the tasks presented allude the meaning operational, cardinal and symbolic meaning. Likewise, the explicit study absence of the key objects, such as, unity, tens, hundreds, and thousands unit, is observed.