IJIET
Vol. 2, No. 1, January 2018
55
significant difference in the students’ performance on accuracy between pretest
and posttest for multiplication; moreover, an improvement is noted from pretest to
posttest as can be seen from the means. The statistical
comparison of pretest
(mean score of 65) and posttest (mean score of 82.93) scores in multiplication
showed that there is a significant difference between them. As the researchers
noted, in the additional abacus training, emphasis
was placed on performing
fundamental multiplication algorithms to pave the way for multi-digit
multiplication. The researchers allocated much time during abacus training on
teaching the students the multiplication of two- with one-digit numbers.
During the training, a key problem was that the
students were not able to
mentally obtain the product of a two- and a one-digit number. Among the 15
students in the experimental group, six of them did not yet use mental abacus for
such kind of multiplication. Thus, the researchers took initiative to reteach and
train that students on how to do mental abacus here, before they could move to
multi-digit multiplication. Thus, much time was spent
for helping the students
master in mental abacus for two- with one-digit number as a requirement to do
multi digit multiplication.
This course of action was in line with the ideas espoused by Stigler (1984).
According to him, there is a close relationship between mental abacus users and
their capacity in using the abacus physically. Moreover, the more the children
practice using abacus, the more they can perform mental abacus. It took four
meetings to finish the practice on two-digit by one-digit mental multiplication.
Afterwards, the students were asked to use mental abacus
for two meetings and
followed this up with training on multi-digit multiplication using the abacus for
the remaining meetings.
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