Analysis of students' errors in responding to TIMSS domain algebra problem

Abstract

The TIMSS results were referred by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture to develop curriculum and textbooks of school mathematics. The purpose of this study was to understand the errors of students learning with the 2006 curriculum and students learning with the 2013 curriculum in answering the TIMSS algebra content domain. A test consisting of fifteen questions of content domain algebra and application was administered to the students. The wrong answer of the test was analysed to determine the weakness and strength of algebra learning conducted. The results showed that students studying with the 2013 curriculum were outperformed their counterpart in solving the problem of algebra content domain concerning expression of application. Misconceptions about algebra and arithmetic were also found in students' answers. The misconceptions found in this study can be further developed into an instrument to evaluate pedagogical content knowledge.