Abstract
In this study, we used problem posing as a measure of the effect of middle-school curriculum on students' learning in high school. Students who had used a standards-based curriculum in middle school performed equally well or better in high school than students who had used more traditional curricula. The findings from this study not only show evidence of strengths one might expect of students who used the standards-based reform curriculum but also bolster the feasibility and validity of problem posing as a measure of curriculum effect on student learning. In addition, the findings of this study demonstrate the usefulness of employing a qualitative rubric to assess different characteristics of students' responses to the posing tasks. Instructional and methodological implications of this study, as well as future directions for research, are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Notes
In US currency, nickels and pennies are coins worth 5¢ and 1¢, respectively.
References
Barrows, H. S. (2000). Problem-based learning applied to medical education. Springfield, IL: Southern Illinois University School of Medicine.
Cai, J. (1998). An investigation of U.S. and Chinese students' mathematical problem posing and problem solving. Mathematics Education Research Journal, 10, 37–50.
Cai, J. (2011). Mathematical problem posing research: Answered and unanswered questions. Newark, DE: University of Delaware.
Cai, J., & Hwang, S. (2002). Generalized and generative thinking in U.S. and Chinese students' mathematical problem solving and problem posing. Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 21(4), 401–421.
Cai, J., & Nie, B. (2007). Problem solving in Chinese mathematics education: Research and practice. ZDM–International Journal on Mathematics Education, 39, 459–475.
Cai, J., Wang, N., Moyer, J. C., & Nie, B. (2011). Longitudinal investigation of the curriculum effect: An analysis of student learning outcomes from the LieCal project. International Journal of Educational Research, 50(2), 117–136.
Chinese National Ministry of Education, Office of School Teaching Materials and Institute of Curriculum and Teaching Materials. (1986). A collection of mathematical syllabuses (1949–1985). Beijing: The Author.
Doyle, W. (1983). Academic work. Review of Educational Research, 53, 159–199.
Einstein, A., & Infeld, L. (1938). The evolution of physics. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Ellerton, N. F. (1986). Children's made-up mathematics problems—a new perspective on talented mathematicians. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 17, 261–271.
English, L. D. (1997a). The development of fifth-grade children's problem-posing abilities. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 34, 183–217.
English, L. D. (1997b). Development of seventh-grade students' problem posing. In E. Pehkonen (Ed.), Proceedings of the 21st annual conference for the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (Vol. 2, pp. 241–248). Lahti: University of Helsinki and Lahti Research and Training Center.
Hashimoto, Y. (1987). Classroom practice of problem solving in Japanese elementary schools. In J. P. Becker & T. Miwa (Eds.), Proceedings of the U.S.–Japan seminar on mathematical problem solving (pp. 94–119). Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University.
Healy, C. C. (1993). Creating miracles: A story of student discovery. Berkeley, CA: Key Curriculum Press.
Hmelo-Silver, C. E. (2004). Problem-based learning: what and how do students learn? Educational Psychology Review, 16, 235–266.
Keil, G. E. (1967). Writing and solving original problems as a means of improving verbal arithmetic problem solving ability (Doctoral Dissertation, Indiana University, 1964). Dissertation Abstracts International, 25(12), 7109.
Kilpatrick, J. (1987). Problem formulating: Where do good problems come from? In A. H. Schoenfeld (Ed.), Cognitive science and mathematics education (pp. 123–147). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Lappan, G., Fey, J. T., Fitzgerald, W. M., Friel, S. N., & Phillips, E. D. (2002). Connected mathematics. Needham, MA: Prentice Hall.
Lu, C., & Wang, B. (2006). Research on mathematics teaching through using mathematical situations and posing problem in high school and primary school [in Chinese]. Guiyang: Guizhou People's Publishing House.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (1991). Professional standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Norman, G. R., & Schmidt, H. G. (1992). The psychological basis of problem-based learning: A review of the evidence. Academic Medicine, 67, 557–565.
Polya, G. (1957). How to solve it (2nd ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Rivette, K., Grant, Y., Ludema, H., & Rickard, A. (2003). Connected mathematics project: Research and evaluation summary (2003rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Rosenshine, B., Meister, C., & Chapman, S. (1996). Teaching students to generate questions: A review of the intervention studies. Review of Educational Research, 66(2), 181–221.
Show-Me Center. (2002). CMP implementation map. Retrieved 3 September 2006, from http://www.math.msu.edu/cmp/Overview/ImplementationMap.htm.
Silver, E. A. (1994). On mathematical problem posing. For the Learning of Mathematics, 14(1), 19–28.
Silver, E. A. (1997). Fostering creativity through instruction rich in mathematical problem solving and problem posing. ZDM-The International Journal on Mathematics Education, 97(3), 75–80.
Silver, E. A., & Cai, J. (1996). An analysis of arithmetic problem posing by middle school students. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 27, 521–539.
Silver, E. A., Mamona-Downs, J., Leung, S. S., & Kenney, P. A. (1996). Posing mathematical problems: An exploratory study. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 27(3), 293–309.
Singer, F. M. (2009). The dynamic infrastructure of mind—a hypothesis and some of its applications. New Ideas in Psychology, 27, 48–74.
Singer, F. M., & Moscovici, H. (2008). Teaching and learning cycles in a constructivist approach to instruction. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(6), 1613–1634.
Stanic, G., & Kilpatrick, J. (1988). Historical perspectives on problem solving in the mathematics curriculum. In R. Charles & E. Silver (Eds.), The teaching and assessing of mathematical problem solving (pp. 1–22). Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Stoyanova, E., & Ellerton, N. F. (1996). A framework for research into students' problem posing in school mathematics. In P. C. Clarkson (Ed.), Technology in mathematics education (pp. 518–525). Melbourne, Victoria: Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia.
van den Brink, J. F. (1987). Children as arithmetic book authors. For the Learning of Mathematics, 7, 44–48.
Vernon, D. T., & Blake, R. L. (1993). Does problem-based learning work?: A meta-analysis of evaluative research. Academic Medicine, 68, 550–563.
Wang, B., & Lu, C. (2000). Innovation and mathematical education of the primary and middle school [in Chinese]. Journal of Mathematics Education, 9(4), 34–37.
Yuan, X., & Sriraman, B. (2011). An exploratory study of relationships between students' creativity and mathematical problem-posing abilities: Comparing Chinese and U.S students. In B. Sriraman & K. Lee (Eds.), The elements of creativity and giftedness in mathematics (pp. 5–28). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
The research reported here is supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation (ESI-0454739 and DRL-1008536). Any opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Science Foundation.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cai, J., Moyer, J.C., Wang, N. et al. Mathematical problem posing as a measure of curricular effect on students' learning. Educ Stud Math 83, 57–69 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-012-9429-3
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-012-9429-3