Mathematical thinking styles

undergraduate students and their

of
achievement in mathematics
Cite as: AIP Conference 1868, 050018 https://doi.org/ 5
Proceedings
Published Online: 04 August (2017); 10.1063/1.499514
2017
i
Risnanosant

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Author(s).
 Mathematical Thinking Styles of Undergraduate Students
and Their Achievement in Mathematics
Risnanosanti
Muhammadiyah University of Bengkulu Bengkulu,
Indonesia nosantirisna@gmail.com

Abstract. The main purpose of this study is to analyze the role of mathematical thinking styles in students’ achievement
in mathematics. On the basis of this study, it is also to generate recommendation for classroom instruction. The two
specific aims are; first to observe students’ mathematical thinking styles during problem solving, the second to asses
students’ achievement in mathematics. The data were collected by using Mathematical Thinking Styles questionnaires
and test of students’ achievement in mathematics. The subject in this study was 35 students from third year at
mathematics study program of Muhammadiyah University of Bengkulu in academic year 2016/2017. The result of this
study was that the students have three mathematical thinking styles (analytic, visual, and integrated), and the students
who have analytic styles have better achievement than those who have visual styles in mathematics.

INTRODUCTION
The process of thinking is complex, and everybody who has ever attempted to study thinking has to admit. It is a
very complicated matter. However, the theories of thinking have been continuously developed because of the
curiosity to figure out human potential. The study of thinking styles emerges from a curiosity across several aspects.
The first aspect is that the people are enthusiastic about how to optimize human performance in work and life
contexts. Using a certain thinking style in a particular situation may enhance the possibility of increasing
performance or incomes. Matching thinking style to the environment may induce excellent performance. The second
aspect is differences in thinking styles influence learning, problem solving, decision making, communicating, and
interpersonal relationships.
In the field of education, scholars identified that thinking styles contribute significantly to students’ academic
achievement, learning approaches, cognitive development and social development [1, 2]. Thinking styles also affect
teaching behaviors, such as teaching approaches, interaction styles, and styles of humor [3]. Teachers’ thinking
styles had characterized interpersonal behavior towards students, whether they are helping, understanding and
allowing student freedom, or being strict, showing dissatisfaction and expressing anger.
Research reveals that thinking styles play an important role in teaching and learning [4]. According to research
from Van der Walt [5] a learner’s thinking style is a factor that influences the effective learning and teaching of
mathematics and could predict achievement of mathematics in school. Bernardo and his colleagues [1] tried to
apply Sternberg's theory of mental self-government applies to a non-Western culture. 429 Filipino university
students responded to the inventory. The results of study showed a relation between thinking styles and grade point
average, which supports the proposed link between thinking styles and academic achievement.
The learning style is how a learner receives information, whilst a thinking style is how a learner processes
information and reflects on ideas in their mind. The thinking style is a ‘preference’ for using abilities in certain ways
during processing. The question from the above study is: Which thinking styles are associated with student
achievement in learning mathematics? Hence, I conducted a study with regard to the thinking styles and students
achievement in mathematics.

The 4th International Conference on Research, Implementation, and Education of Mathematics and Science (4th ICRIEMS)
AIP Conf. Proc. 1868, 050018-1–050018-5; doi: 10.1063/1.4995145
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1548-5/$30.00
THINKING STYLE

Every student has different thinking style. In particular, Zhang and Sternberg [6] define a thinking style as ‘a
source of individual differences in academic performance that are related not only to abilities but also to how people
050018-1
prefer to use their abilities’. Zhang and Sternberg [7] said thinking styles is the way of thinking as individuals
preferred thinking style when doing business and describes how the individuals uses or exploits the capacities that he
owns which is not an ability but it is located between the character and capabilities. On the other hand Zang et.al [8]
defined thinking style as an individual’s preference for a specific thinking process. Therefore thinking styles more
emphasis on the method of our thought rather than its contents.
The dimensions of thinking styles are dimensions cognitive and affective. The cognitive dimensions of thinking
styles related to the use of strategies for reasoning and problem solving acquired by experience. The thinking styles
will affect student ability to solve the problem and academic achievement. Related to Sternberg and Grigorenko [2]
said that “found that certain thinking styles correlated positively to a learner’s success in a variety of academic tasks,
whereas other thinking styles tended to correlate negatively to success in the same tasks”.
Thinking about mathematics namely thinks mathematically. The term thinks mathematically is similarly to
mathematical thinking. Mathematical thinking was a mental operation used in solving problem affirmed by the
mathematical knowledge and disposition. According to Borromeo Ferri [8] thinking mathematics styles is the way in
which an individual prefers to present, to understand, and to think through mathematical facts and connections by
certain internal imaginations and/or externalized representations. Hence, a mathematical style is based on two
components: 1) internal imaginations and externalized representations, 2) the list of respectively the
dissecting way of proceeding.
Based on Borromeo Ferri [8] there are three mathematical thinking styles:
x Visual thinking style: Visual thinkers show preferences for distinctive pictorial imaginations and
representations as well as preferences for the understanding of mathematical facts and connections in a
holistic way. The internal imaginations are mainly effected by strong associations with experienced
situations.
x Analytical thinking style: Analytic thinkers show preferences for formal imaginations and representations.
They are able to comprehend mathematical facts preferably throughsymbolic or verbal representations, and
prefer to proceed rather in a sequence of steps. x Integrated thinking style: These people combine visual and
analytic ways of thinking and able to switch flexibly between different representations or ways of
proceeding.

METHODOLOGY

The design of this study was a qualitative study with descriptive research in the form of case studies. The subject
in this study was 35 students from third year at mathematics study program of Muhammadiyah University of
Bengkulu in academic year 2016/2017. The researcher chose the students as the subjects because there were many of
them who had dominant thinking styles. There were three tools in gathering the data: 1) Questionnaire; 2) Interview
to obtain data on the student's thinking style; and 3) Documentation to obtain data in student’s achievement.
The Questionnaire was made based on every indicator in thinking style. The data were analyzed by using Miles &
Hulbermen’s techniques. Then the data were presented in narrative form. After that, it can be concluded that the
process of thinking students in solving problem based on thinking styles.

RESULT

To find out how the thinking style of students the researcher interviewed six students to compare between the
result of the test and students’ thinking styles. The result of this study based on three mathematical thinking styles
[8] namely visual, analysis and integrated. Student who had visual thinking styles show preferences for distinctive
pictorial imaginations and representations. Analytic thinkers show preferences for formal imaginations and
representations. Student who have integrated thinking style combine visual and analytic ways of thinking.
Understand the Problem

Student who had visual thinking style and understanding the problem would receive the information contained in
the problem by reading the questions carefully but quickly. They read the problem repeatedly to understand what
desirable in the problem. Student who had visual thinking style underlines important data/word when they read the
problem. Then from data obtaining it tries to process roughly what linkages between one to another data. The
subjects then save that information and pour their thoughts in the answer sheet by writing what the known and
questioned in the matter given. The students who had a visual style wrote by using their own language as only
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focusing on the data in the form of numbers. The analysis of students’ thinking style received information by reading
about the pattern, and then they processed the information by focusing on the data number. They saved it again then
wrote what they knew. The subjects who had integrated thinking style received the information by reading the paper,
raising questions, and using they finger to address sentences. They processed the information about the terms and
conditions of the sentences. Eventually, they saved the information by writing the question and answering things in
sentences they have used.

Planning and Implementing

The students who had visual thinking style are planning and implementing to solve the problem by connecting
the information with the formula used to process the information. They associated the data to determine which
formula appropriately used. In the phase of saving the information, the students applied the formula by calculating
and writing down their answers. In the next step, the students recalled their information they have stored. All types
of thinking styles showed similarity in processing information to determine formulas for solving problems. In
solving the case of choosing the way to save money above, the formula used by them is multiplying the number of
days for 4 months with the number of coins they saved every day. The phase of storing the information was
indicated by getting the data and writing it again. In the phase of recall, there is a little difference of information
between the students who had the visual thinking style and those having analysis styles. The students who had
analysis style stated the number of information gradually, while those who had the integrated style expressed it
directly in one day. There was similarity among students’ visual, analysis, and integrated thinking style in processing
information. The first step that was applied was to find how much money saved for one day. After the process of
calculating, the subject used the information to write the answer. Then, they called the information in the problem to
concern about the number of coins that saved a day. The coins are multiple by 10 days. But during the processing of
the phase of information containing errors used by the subjects. With the analysis of thinking styles it should be
multiplied by 10,000 but they were multiplied by 120. In the step to recall the subject with visual thinking style, it
was less careful in concluding the final result, thus resulting in less precise results supposedly they still needed one
more step to get to the right solution.

Looking Back

The visual students conducted re-examination answers. The process of information by using the formula had
been applied by showing multiplication steps in written. In this step, the students who saved the information were
able to retrieve to consider the important data. It was used during the re-solution process. Then, the recall
information explained all the operations that had been conducted, including the process of calculation. The students
were less able to draw a final conclusion to answer based on what is requested in the problem. The students who had
analysis of thinking styles looking back t, they were able to state a formula that had been used although looked a
little hesitation. They tried to use information to substitute existing data into the steps of the solution. The recall
stated by explaining all the steps which had been prepared and used it to the requirements requested in the problem.
The students who had this style were less able to write down what the problem was. Therefore, the student
integrated style based on use the formula they have written. The students who had integrated thinking style were
able to explain their argument in the interview process. The students who had a good thinking were able to give the
reasons why they used the formula that had been written. Then students save information related to the explanations
of results. As well as the students' thinking styles visual, analysis, and integration they were able to say the first
formula it uses. Phase save the information they write the data processing has been done. Then recall information
indicated that the process of arithmetic operations has been done and it can be held accountable.

DISCUSSION

The thinking of students based on learning styles in understanding the problem, students with a visual learning
style receive information by reading repeatedly until they can understand the problem, even if there are some
resources said that the visual thinking students had another styles like: of underline the important word, retrieving
data in the form of numbers, write the question and answer thing. The s tudent who had analysis styles receive
information by reading patterned, stage stores information only retrieve the data that are likely used in the
calculation, subject only phase information store write data information only, do not write in question, subject

050018-3
integrated receive information by reading about holding up the paper, sometimes use they fingers to point words, the
stage of processing information they seeks the terms and conditions required in the matter, stage keep information
write what is known and asked but do not use their own language. In terms of planning and implementing measures
the students to the completion of the visual and analysis style process the information to make a solution planning
but incomplete. In the save and recall stage, the students wrote the first result in the processing of the information. If
the information is incorrect so the results can be error. While student with kinesthetic learning style is able to process
information using the correct formula, the stage of saving the information show that the results related to the plan.
The recall stage, the terms and conditions in student integrated style can be found in the problem. The students
integrated more accurate rigorous in terms of the calculation, and systematic writing answer. In checking/looking
back answers, the students with learning visual and auditory information style only can shows the process of the
using in formula that they write before. But they less able save and recall information during the planning process
and implementation solution the problem. Subject integrated the subject is able to process information and
demonstrate the use of the formula. They are capable of saving and remembering information. They are looking back
in the calculation of the process and measure the implemented.
In understanding problem student with thinking style receive information by reading the questions carefully and
thoroughly until deemed. They are able to understand the core of the question. The visual student in stage of
processing information only focuses on the data that is numeric. The analysis students process information by
observing a number at the terms in question. Saving and recall stage similarity between write the question and
answer things in terms of problem. In planning and implementing stage the students solve the problem using
concepts that have been learned. The stage of processing the information visual student only focused on what was
asked, which is looking for the many coin of money, the stage of storing information by write down the result of
problem solving step. In the recall stage, the visual student call information when the process of understanding the
problem. Subject analysis in processing the information is not only focused on being asked, but also save
information with write down the steps from the preparation of the plan. The analysis student is recall the information
using terms in contained of the matter. It can be said that the student was unable to plan and implement a complete
better than of student’s style visual. In looking back both of student’s analysis and visual styles to looking back on
the answers. The stage processing information student was able to use the formula. The stage of saving information
both subjects showed the same by explaining the calculation process, but subject visual had an error in the process of
concluding the final result.
The result of this research was the same with Zhang and Sternberg argue [6] thinking style as ‘a source of
individual differences in academic performance that were weaned not to abilities but how people prefer to use their
abilities, whereas a learning style refers to a way of approach to learning [9], a thinking style refers to a particular
act, idea, tendency or way of thinking about the execution of a task in the learning process [10]. Thus, a learning
style is how a learner receives information, whilst a thinking style is how a learner processes information and
reflects on ideas in their mind. Cilliers and Sternberg [11] said that a thinking style is a ‘preference’ for using
abilities in certain ways during processing.

CONCLUSION

The article focused on the characterization and comparison of thinking styles of students studying Mathematics.
The aim was to establish which thinking style is associated with students studying these subjects, thus as a guideline
for teacher to help students to develop their potential in mathematics. The results of this research show that the
students' thinking styles can affect the achievement in mathematics. Therefore, teachers must give more attention to
students' learning styles so that they can help the students in learning process.

REFERENCES

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3. Zhang, L. F., Zhua, C. (2011). Thinking styles and conceptions of creativity among university students.Journal
of Educational Psychology, 31(3), 361– 375.

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