A pre-study of grade 6 students’ orientation to social and sociomathematical norms during mathematical problem solving in groups

This paper presents an investigation of mathematical problem solving in two small groups of students in grade 6, as well as the groups’ orientation to social and sociomathematical norms. The interaction within the groups was analysed with proof schemes as analytical tool, in combination with principles and procedures of Ethnomethodological conversation analysis (EMCA). The analysis showed that one group oriented to social and sociomathematical norms that gave rise to a potentially positive learning opportunity, whereas the other group primarily oriented to a socialnorm of equality that overshadowed the mathematical discussion. This study serves as a pre-study for the analysis of larger material, where EMCA appears as a promising methodological contribution