The Investigation of Brain Waves in Problem Solving Process

Abstract

One of the opportunities offered in education by cognitive neuroscience in the learning process is to provide an understanding of individual differences. Therefore, in order to benefit from educational neuroscience, interdisciplinary studies are needed. It can be said that interdisciplinary researches take on an important mission to reach findings of how and where the mathematical thinking is formed. The aim of the study is to investigate the brain activities of students with different cognitive styles as electrophysiological in the process of solving different mathematic problems to contribute the understanding of neural mechanisms in mathematics education. Statistically significant differences were found between the two groups when the asymmetry index values of the brain waves of students with different styles were analyzed in terms of cerebral lobes while they were solving arithmetic problems. Brain activation structures of the participants with different cognitive styles diverge in the process of solving arithmetic problems..

Keywords

• mathematics education
• brain waves
• cognitive styles

Problem Çözme Sürecinde Beyin Dalgalarının İncelenmesi

Öz

Bilişsel sinirbilimin eğitime sunduğu fırsatlardan birisi de öğrenme sürecinde bireysel farklılıkların anlaşılmasını sağlamasıdır. Dolayısıyla eğitimde sinirbiliminden faydalanabilmek için disiplinler arası çalışmalara ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır. Bu disiplinler arası araştırmalar matematiksel düşüncenin nerde ve nasıl oluştuğuna dair bulgulara ulaşabilmek için önemli görevler üstlendiklerini söyleyebiliriz. Sinirsel mekanizmaların anlaşılmasına katkı sağlayabilmek için bu araştırmada farklı bilişsel stillere sahip öğrencilerin aritmetik problemlerini çözme sürecindeki beyin aktiviteleri elektrofizyolojik olarak incelenmiştir. Bilişsel stilleri farklı olan öğrencilerin aritmetik problemleri çözerken beyin dalgalarına ait asimetri indeks değerlerinin loblara göre analizi yapıldığında istatiksel olarak anlamlı farklılıklar belirlenmiştir. Analiz sonuçları belirlenerek yorumlar yapılmıştır. Bu bağlamda, bilişsel stilleri farklı olan öğrencilerin problem çözme sürecinde beyin aktivasyon yapısı farklılık göstermektedir. 

Anahtar Kelimeler

• matematik eğitimi
• beyin dalgaları
• bilişsel stil

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