Analysis
All sessions were videotaped and prepared for storage as a part of the RBDIL video collection that is .hosted on an online video repository, the Video Mosaic Collaborative (http://www.videomosaic.org). The video sessions were first described, transcribed, and coded for critical events. (based on Powell, Francisco, and Maher, 2003). The videotapes were then analysed across all sessions to identify themes about Ariels’ algebraic reasoning. The Ladder Problem was chosen to analyse for this paper because it represented both his early and later algebra knowledge and enables us to trace the details of how he builds his solution.
RESULTS
Event 1: Developing a composite function (7th Grade)
The first event occurs during the 7th grade problem-solving session. After introducing the problem, the researcher asks Ariel to find how many Cuisenaire rods are needed to build a ladder with ten rungs. After building ladders with varying number of rungs he offers the answer of 32 and is asked about how he solved the problem. He was then asked to write up his solution (Figure 2).