Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect that calculators have
on the attitudes and numerical problem-solving skills of primary students. The
sample used for this research was one of convenience. The sample consisted of
two grade 3 classes within the York Region District School Board. The students
in the experimental group used calculators for this problem-solving unit. The
students in the control group completed the same numerical problem-solving unit
without the use of calculators.
The pretest-posttest control group design was used for this study. All
students involved in this study completed a computational pretest and an attitude
pretest. At the end of the study, the students completed a computational posttest.
Five students from the experimental group and five students from the control
group received their posttests in the form of a taped interview. At the end of the
unit, all students completed the attitude scale that they had received before the
numerical problem-solving unit once again. Data for qualitative analysis included
anecdotal observations, journal entries, and transcribed interviews. The constant
comparative method was used to analyze the qualitative data. A t test was also
performed on the data to determine whether there were changes in test and
attitude scores between the control and experimental group.
Overall, the findings of this study support the hypothesis that calculators
improve the attitudes of primary students toward mathematics. Also, there is some
evidence to suggest that calculators improve the computational skills of grade 3
students.
