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Yeap Ban Har presented a regular lecture on second day of the conference.TRANSCRIPT
The Emphasis of Primary-
Level Textbooks in
Singapore on Higher-Order
Competencies
Yeap Ban Har
Marshall Cavendish Institute
Singapore
Slides are available for download at Marshall Cavendish Institute’s Facebook
or at www.banhar.blogspot.com
Background
1992Introduction of Problem-
Solving Curriculum
1997Thinking SchoolsLearning Nation
1982Introduction of Singapore mathematics
textbooks as they are known today.
2001Introduction of textbooks published by
private publishers and approved by Ministry of Education.
2007New editions of textbooks are
published with the introduction of the revised curriculum.
Mathematics is “an excellent
vehicle for the development
and improvement of a person’s
intellectual competence”.Ministry of Education Singapore 2006
Methodology
SampleTwo textbook series were selected.
One was the one published by Ministry of Education in 1982 and revised twice. The edition used in this study is the latest edition (1999). This
was the only textbook series used.
The other was published by a private publisher in 2001 and revised once. The edition used in this
study is the latest edition (2007). This is the textbook series used by majority of schools.
Details
1999 Series
2007 Series
3A 104 pages3B 096 pages
3A 136 pages3B 174 pages
3A-1 80 pages3A-2 72 pages3B-1 72 pages3B-2 72 pages
3A-1 088 pages3A-2 104 pages3B-1 112 pages3B-2 104 pages
Textbook Workbook
506 pages
718 pages
Emphasis on VisualizationSee also Ho, S. Y. & Yeap, B. H. (2011). Development of Visualization Skills in
Singapore Primary School Mathematics Textbooks. Paper presented at PME-35
Angkara, Turkey.
Visuals are used to teach
concepts – in this case
multiplication.
Emphasis on Visualization
Visuals are used to
teach concepts –
distributive property of
multiplication – without
using formal terms.
Emphasis on Visualization
Visuals are used in a
systematic way to teach
terms. The progression
from visual to abstract is
observed throughout the
books.
Emphasis on Visualization
Emphasis on VisualizationThere is also an emphasis
on the use of concrete
materials to lead to visuals.
“The main feature of the package is
the use of Concrete Pictorial
Abstract approach.”Primary Mathematics 1999
Emphasis on Visualization
Emphasis on Visualization
Visuals are used
extensively in solving of
word problems.
Emphasis on Visualization
The use of visuals such as the model method was in response to
students’ poor performance in word problems.
Emphasis on Generalization
Looking for patterns and making
generalization is also emphasized.
This emphasizes the relatedness
between the 2, 4 and 8 times
table.
This emphasizes a general idea
– the use of doubling to multiply.
Emphasis on Generalization
Explicit request to engage
in higher-order
competencies such as to
look for a pattern.
Emphasis on Generalization
There are
sections of the
later series
devoted to
higher-order
thinking.
Emphasis on Number Sense
Number sense, as
opposed to
computation, is given
emphasis.
Emphasis on Number Sense
Mental strategies are
taught explicitly.
Emphasis on Number Sense
Mental strategies are
taught explicitly across
domains.
Emphasis on
Communication
There are sections in the
later series that require
students to articulate their
thinking in written
language.
Emphasis on Metacognition
Also, the later series
require students to identify
mistakes.
The later series
also include
some open-
ended tasks.
Higher-Order Competencies
• Visualization
• Generalization
• Number Sense
• Communication
• Metacognition