Justin Fiume

20152499

EDUC3626 week 8 reading

An explanation for the use of arrays
Lorraine Day & Derek Hurrell

Aim: addressing the issue of the ‘why and how’ of mathematics, leading to students being
fluent users of multiplication for mental and written computation.

 Use of arrays and regions allow students to go from additive thinking into
multiplicative thinking. Further into Abstract reasoning.
o “recognise and represent multiplication as repeated addition, groups and
arrays” (ACARA, 2014).
 Understanding 1: factors and multiples through manipulatives – sharing idea
 Understanding 2: arrays can help to develop is that of commutativity.
 ‘Number families’ can be used as a powerful model to visually demonstrate the
relationship of numbers through different functions.
 The above strategies allow students to build from and up towards greater
understanding.
 Lower secondary students can “extend and apply the distributive law to the
expansion of algebraic expressions” and “factorise algebraic expressions by
identifying numerical factors” (ACARA, 2014).

The most compelling reasons to use an array or region model is to “support the shift from an
additive groups of model to a factor–factor–product model which is needed to support
fraction representation, the multiplication and division of larger whole numbers, fractions and
decimals, and algebra” (Siemon, 2013).

Reflection

The Day and Hurrell article sheds some light on ways to promote the understanding of
mental strategies for multiplication. The Australian Curriculum states that by year two
students should “recognise and represent multiplication as repeated addition, groups and
arrays”. This can help students make the transition from additive to multiplicative thinking a
lot smoother as it offers students the chance to still count each group in total. I personally
found arrays especially helpful in primary school as they were organised and evenly shared.
I believe that the mathematical language (groups/lots) used this phase is also very important
for the students when making connections. I noticed when doing the student interviews, with
the year ones, that arrays were used by covering the majority of it with only the edges of the
first column and row showing (see image below, left). Two of the students were able to make
the connection that the five on the top and the four on the side would be 4x5 and with that
multiplicative knowledge they were able to determine the answer was 20. This would be
used in a more established mathematical environment but even with the basics used, arrays
are structured visual representations of multiplication.
 Justin Fiume
20152499

I remember using arrays in school to determine the missing area of certain abstract shapes
and found it an incredibly useful strategy. The uses of it go further beyond as students begin
to learn about factors of numbers, sometimes the multiples also, and making that connection
between numbers – especially reversible multiplication. I have always used arrays as a way
to partition numbers when multiplying as it enables the user to break down bigger numbers
without using the place value strategy. Multiplying a sum like 12x13 would look terrifying for
some students but the array can break down the sum for easier use by first taking the tens
away and putting them into its own category (see image above, right). Once the sum is put
into a representation of two-by two-digit multiplication, students are able to make smaller
multiplication sums as seen in the image.

I like how this can be applied to lower secondary as the

system can represent abstract concepts such as expanding
quadratic functions. I was never taught this method at school
but I have found it invaluable when forming an understanding
of when the unknown number is 2x or x2, this array is definitely
a strategy that I would use to teach this concept.

Overall, arrays are the perfect transition tool for helping students move from additive thinking
(lower primary) to multiplicative thinking (middle primary) to eventually algebraic thinking
(upper primary). Day & Hurrell describe arrays as ‘a standard, written algorithm is a useful
tool. A standard, written algorithm, which is constructed with understanding, is an
exceptionally powerful tool (2015, p.22). I thoroughly agree with this quote and believe that
arrays are an essential tool to transition students with higher order thinking.