Difficulties in learning algebra, a study with standardized tests

Abstract

This work is a study aimed at identifying the main difficulties that students show when solving algorithmic or algebraic problems. As a reference point, we used the database that contains the results of the application of standardized mathematics tests on basic education students from 7th to 9th grade (ages 12 to 15) in Honduras. After an analysis of the statistical parameters of difficulty, correlation, as well as the graphical analysis of the options of each item, the items answered incorrectly by students who had high scores in the applied tests were selected, which allowed them to be analyzed taking as reference the research carried out in other contexts. The results show that high performance students make mistakes in basic problems of arithmetic and algebra. We believe that recognizing these errors is a good way to guide teacher education and training processes, as well as to strengthen teaching strategies aimed at avoiding the identified errors.

Keywords:
Difficulties; Mistakes; Mathematics; Evaluation; Algebra