Abstracts Book - IMRC 2018

• SF7-O009
IMPORTANCE OF METACOGNITIVE PROCESSES IN THE
DEVELOPMENT OF MATHEMATICAL THINKING
Luis José Yudico Anaya 1 , Ana Elisa Martinez del Rio 1
1 Universidad de La Cienega del Estado de Michoacán de Ocampo, Nanotechnology, Mexico.
Although mathematical thinking is considered to be fundamental element of
materials-sciences/ engineering education, little empirical research has been
conducted to understand How engineering students actually acquire this skill?
and What problems do they face along the way?Over the last 12 years we have
observed that due to the lack of basics math’s skills and knowledge (arithmetic
and basic algebra), with which students arrive to university, the development of
mathematical thinking tops the list of the most difficult task to achieve for our
first-year students.The increasingly poor education at the basic and middle
levels has also increased the intensity of this problem. In this situation we have
seen the need to make important curricular adaptations (like review arithmetic
again). In our experience we have observed that How You Teach is even more
important than What You Teach, so we rethink our pedagogical objectives as
well. It is commonly accepted that the best way to learn is “learning by doing”,
however, there are moments of reflection (before and after) where
metacognition shows its potential. Putting more emphasis on metacognitive
processes has allowed us to face the educational challenges of our region. This
talk takes a research-informed approach towards understanding the role of
metacognition in mathematics education. From our experience, the
metacognitive strategies identified in this study could serve as a guide to
promote the development of mathematical thinking and a critical attitude.
Keywords: Mathematical Thinking, Metacognitive Processes, Critical Attitude
Presenting authors email: ljyudico@gmail.com