• Communications of Mathematical Education
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.429-448
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• 2013

The aim of this study was to examine how analogical mapping articulation activity played a role in solving process in word problems. We analyzed the problem solving strategies and processes that the participating thirty-three 8th grade students employed when solving the problems through analogical mapping articulation activities, and also the characteristics of the thinking processes from the aspects of similarity. As a result, this study indicates that analogical mapping articulation activity could be helpful when the students solved similar word problems, although some of them gained correct answers through pseudo-analytic thinking. Not to have them use pseudo-analytic thinking, it might be necessary to help them recognize superficial similarity and difference among the problems and construct structural similarity to know the principle of solution associated with the problematic situations.