Student approaches to learning, conceptions of mathematics, and successful outcomes in learning mathematics

Abstract

In this chapter, I concentrate on success as the completion of a degree and investigate mathematics as a key component in that success. I examine the connections between approaches to learning, conceptions of mathematics, and student performance as measured by their grades. This study highlights practical implications for mathematics in higher education, draws from the comprehensive report of the Enhancing Teaching-Learning Environments project by Hounsell and Entwistle (ETL shortened experiences of teaching and learning questionnaire [measurement instrument] 2005), and extends the international research on student conceptions of mathematics by Wood et al. (Becoming a mathematician, Springer, Dordrecht 2012). Surveys were used to investigate the learning experience of a random sample of first year mathematics students in Australia and New Zealand. This chapter highlights two key findings of relevance to teachers and curriculum developers: firstly, that successful mathematics performance was strongly associated with deep approaches to learning, organised approaches to learning, and a cohesive conception of mathematics; and secondly, that surface approaches to learning were negatively related to modelling and the abstract conceptions of mathematics.