Arielle Orsini
Arielle Orsini from the Mathematics Teaching and Learning Lab at Concordia University presented a poster at the PME-NA conference in November on a conceptual replication of manipulative use on students’ perceptions of the objects and their math learning.
 
Previous studies showed that when students used manipulatives as math tools in a math task context, they perceived the objects as math tools and there was a positive impact on their math learning. In comparison, when children used manipulatives as toys in a play session, they perceived them at toys but there was no effect on their math learning. These studies, however, confounded manipulative use (math tool vs. toy) and context (task vs. play). In her study, Arielle addressed this confound by having Grade 1 students use manipulatives as either math tools or toys only in a play context intervention.
 
She found that students’ perceptions of the object’s function matched how they were used in the intervention, which was consistent with previous research. It also demonstrates that children can develop a math tool perception of manipulatives in a play context. That said, when children played with the manipulatives, the effect of using them as math tools or toys on learning was no longer present as shown in previous research. This suggests that perhaps context (task vs. play) outweighs how manipulatives are used (math tools vs. toys).