Figure 3. Representation development of linear relation in Chinese and U.S. lessons
The U.S teacher developed multiple representations simultaneously over sequential
lessons through different activities, such as visual sorting, manipulative drawing and
matching, and comparative and contrasting exploration. The teacher tried to deepen the
students’ understanding and integration of different representations through
progressive activities. This diagram shows that the Chinese teacher tried to develop the
concept of linear equations (symbolic representations) and graphs of linear equations
(graphic representations) through solving problems (verbal daily problem and symbolic linear equations) by making use of tabular and numerical representations.
Thus, students may have a deep understanding of linear equations and its figures and
also understand the ways of drawing a figure of linear equation by plotting two points
for the linear equation. However, they may not realize that numerical and tabular
representations are of the same importance as other representations.