MATH 4495 Study Guide - Comprehensive Final Exam Guide - Polynomial, Nth Root, Mathematics
Document Summary
According to the document on page 89 instrumental understanding is rules without reason . This is when students are taught by their teacher a rule or a formula in mathematics that they can apply to a certain problem to achieve the correct answer. Once the students are taught this rule they memorize the rule operations. Rational understanding is when the student understands the mathematics they are doing. They understand why they are preforming an operation or can explain their reasoning. Therefore, instrumental understanding is students memorizing rules while rational understanding is students understanding the mathematics. Instrumental understanding in high school mathematics should be used when multiplying, dividing or simplifying in a mathematics. Multiplication is a rule within mathematics because we understand that 4x4 is essentially 4+4+4+4=16 just as 5x2 is just 5+5=10. Students memorize the rule so when they are given a problem such as 30x9 we don"t have to add up 30, 9 times.
