Chinese and Singaporean sixth-grade students' strategies for solving problems about speed

This study examined 361 Chinese and 345 Singaporean sixth-grade students' performance and problem-solving strategies for solving 14 problems about speed. By focusing on students from two distinct high-performing countries in East Asia, we provide a useful perspective on the differences that exist in the preparation and problem-solving strategies of these groups of students. The strategy analysis indicates that the Chinese sample used algebraic strategies more frequently and more successfully than the Singaporean sample, although the Chinese sample used a limited variety of strategies. The Singaporean sample's use of model-drawing produced a performance advantage on one problem by converting multiplication/division of fractions into multiplication/division of whole numbers. Several suggestions regarding teaching and learning of mathematical problem solving, algebra, and problems about speed and its related concepts of ratio and proportion are made.