The role of folding back in the process of understanding the concept of area: A case study

Abstract

This paper presents an interpretatively oriented case study focused on the development of understanding of the concept of area in a fifth year primary student, Cecilia. The methodological context of the study was a teaching unit based on problem solving. Our approach takes into consideration the model of growth in mathematical understanding (Pirie & Kieren, 1994, 1999) as an analytical tool. Particularly, folding back emerged as a powerful tool for understanding the dynamics of Cecilia’s growth in understanding the area concept, and enabled us to identify three distinct roles of indicators in her process: generators, drivers and derivative.