Procedural versus content‐related hints for word problem solving: an exploratory study

For primary school students, mathematical word problems are often more difficult to solve than straightforward number problems. Word problems require reading and analysis skills, and in order to explain their situational contexts, the proper mathematical knowledge and number operations have to be selected. To improve students' ability in solving word problems, the problem solving process could be supported by procedural and content specific guidance or with only procedural support.. This paper evaluates the effect of two types of hints, procedural only and content‐procedural, provided by a computer programme presented in two versions. Students of grade 6 were randomly assigned to these two versions, which offered five lesson units consisting of eight word problems each. The results indicate that on average the students in the procedural‐content hints group (n = 54) finished about just as many problems in the programme as their counterparts in the procedural‐only condition (n = 51). However, the participants in the first group solved more problems correctly and improved their problem‐solving skills more as indicated by the scores on the problem‐solving post‐test. Apart from presenting our analysis of the findings of this study, also its limitations and its possible implications for future research are discussed in this paper.