Students^ Representation of Addition and Subtraction
Dini Asri Kusnia Dewi, Didi Suryadi, Endang Mulyana

Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia

Abstract

Addition and subtraction are two arithmetic operations that are interpreted as simple and easy operations. But in fact, we often make mistakes in adding or subtracting something. So far, the discussion on addition and subtraction in textbooks that are widely used in schools, most of them do not have illustrations of the counting process that can help children understand more deeply. Previous research also revealed some of the problems experienced by students in this regard. That is, the achievement that a student has does not necessarily represent his understanding where according to previous research that a person^s understanding depends on the modeling mechanism he has. Hence, this research aims to identify the meaning possessed by children of these two arithmetic operations. This study uses a qualitative research design in which students will be given a test as a facility to express their ideas. The research result states that when the grade level shows a similar tendency and there is also a different tendency for certain problems.

Keywords: addition, subtraction, representation

Topic: Mathematics Education