What Students Say About Their Mathematical Thinking When They Listen

摘要

Mathematical listening is an important aspect of mathematical communication. Yet there are relatively few examinations of this phenomenon. Further, existing studies of students' mathematical listening come from observational data, lacking the student perspective. This study examined student replies to an open-response question regarding what happens to their thinking about mathematics when they listen to their peers' mathematical talk. Results suggest varying ways of listening that range from more passive to more active forms. While relationships were observed between ways of listening and perceived forms of engaging in mathematical discussion, no relationship was observed with the frequency with which students reported participating in discussions.