ABSTRACT

This chapter considers the strategies and interactions of young children as they worked on technology-based activities embedded within a mathematics curriculum. 1 The children worked collaboratively in pairs (boy, girl, or boy/girl) on tasks in a curriculum unit that contained both on- and off-computer tasks related to length and space concepts. Data from this study and others (e.g., Yelland, 1994a, 1995a, 1995b) highlighted that the ways in which young children collaborate, and the strategies that they used to solve novel problems were related to the gender composition of the pair and other factors, such as the structure of the task, prior mathematical knowledge, self-efficacy, the role of the teacher or peers, and engagement with the material and ideas. Data are presented here to illustrate the complex nature of performance in computer-based mathematical tasks. They highlight a number of critical teaching and learning issues that should be considered in order to maximize learning opportunities for all children in early mathematical experiences.