Correct Answer - Option 2 : Primary level mathematics is concrete and does not require abstraction
The basic structure of mathematics includes arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and trigonometry that helps in learning the techniques to handle abstractions and structures.
- The teaching of mathematics must develop attitudes to think, reason, analyze, and articulate logically.
- The nature of mathematics highly influences the nature of the teaching-learning process in mathematics.
Nature of mathematics:
- Mathematics plays a very important role in education because it has universal applicability i.e., it is present everywhere in our life from buying vegetables to predicting the weather of different cities at a time. Therefore, it has a wide scope of generalization.
- The teaching of mathematics proceeds from the concrete to abstract concepts of mathematics. In primary classes, the mathematical concepts are concrete in nature which moves to abstract from one class to the next class.
- At the primary level, the teaching of concrete concepts helps in developing the basic mathematical skills that are required to handle abstractions in the later level of learning.
- And then in the upper primary and higher classes the abstract concepts of mathematics are taught like algebra, trigonometry, etc.
- The mathematical concepts are hierarchical in nature which add on the practical and conceptual knowledge from one class to the next class i.e., the mathematical concepts are taught in a pre-defined order like first the teaching of arithmetic and then the algebra, trigonometry, and calculus are taught.
- Just like we use letters, alphabets, and words to write or speak a language, mathematical language uses symbols, numbers, diagrams, and graphics to express, define, or prove the mathematical statements and concepts.
- So, there exists a considerable and specific vocabulary of mathematics. For example, terms like percent, discount, commission, dividend, invoice, profit, and loss, etc.
Thus it is clear that primary level mathematics is concrete and does not require abstraction is not correct with regard to the nature of mathematics.
