Examining 5th Grade Students' Learning on Surface Area Calculations with Realistic Mathematics Education Approach

Abstract

The fact that the mathematics course is abstract, that it is not possible to associate it with daily life, and that it is impossible to concretize abstract expressions causes a prejudice against the this course and leads to a decrease in the academic achievements of students. It is seen that throughout history, various studies have been carried out taking this situation into consideration. A group of these studies is on realistic mathematics education. Realistic mathematics education is an approach that aims to concretize the abstract concepts of mathematics by relating them to real-life situations. The purpose is to make mathematics more understandable by concretizing it. In the study, the subject of calculating the surface area of prisms with the use of realistic mathematics education was taught, and the purpose of the study was to examine the effects of this application. The study group consisted of 20 5th grade students. While determining this group, maximum variety sampling strategy was preferred. In the study, action research, one of the qualitative research methods, was used, and the data were interpreted with the help of descriptive analysis and content analysis. The data collection tools in the study included semi-structured interview forms, video recordings, photos and activity sheets prepared by the students under the guidance of the researcher in accordance with the realistic mathematics education approach. When the findings were examined, it was seen that the students showed a positive development in the meaning and visualization processes; that they could reach mathematical inferences on their own; that they enjoyed the mathematics lesson; and that the realistic mathematics education approach gave positive results on learning. Based on these results, it was suggested that not only the application of the realistic mathematics education approach for different acquisitions but also the inclusion of these activities in the textbooks in accordance with the curriculum will result in improvements in favor of learning.