To what extent making connections are given place in mathematics classes?: Examples from real classroom practices

The aim of this study is to determine the extent to which teachers use the connections in their mathematics classroom practices. Three mathematics and three classroom teachers working in different elementary schools in Gaziantep took part in this study. These six teachers? mathematics classroom practices were videotaped at regular intervals throughout the academic year. Research data were obtained by analyzing video recordings. The data were analyzed to find out the extent to which teachers use the connections, namely real life connections, connections between different representations of a concept, connections between concepts and interdisciplinary connections in their classroom practices. The results show that the teachers make more connections in the categories of the connections between concepts and real life connections. Comparatively, there is less emphasis on the connections between multiple representations and interdisciplinary connections are hardly ever used. Consequently, the findings show that the teachers have not given enough importance to make connections in their mathematics classes. Key words: Making connections in mathematics, real life connections, making connections among multiple representations of a concept, making connections between different concepts, interdisciplinary connections.