Investigation of the development of 7th grade students' prediction skills through mathematical modeling activities

The aim of this research is to examine the development of 7th grade students' prediction skills through mathematical modeling activities. The method of this research is a single-group pre-test post-test design, one of the quantitative methods. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with the students. The research was conducted with 21 students studying in the 7th grade at a public secondary school in Artvin in the 2022-2023 academic year. A 25-question mathematics prediction test developed by the researcher, mathematical modeling activities prepared by the researcher, and semi-structured interview questions were used as data collection tools. Expert opinion was taken for the prediction test, mathematical modeling activities and interview questions. Before applying the prediction test, a pilot study was conducted in three different secondary schools. After the pilot study, questions that were not understood in the prediction test were revised again. Semi-implemented interviews with reporting before and after implementing the mathematical section activities were added. This process continues the audio transfer. Mathematical Department activities were five in number and lasted for five weeks, with elective mathematics applications being applied in depth.. As for the data analysis process, quantitative data were analyzed with the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test and qualitative data were analyzed with content analysis. As a result of the research, it was seen that there was a significant difference in the predicted units of education. In the analysis of the interviews conducted with the students, it was found that in their preliminary opinions, they liked the random guessing and potential visualization strategies more, and in their final opinions, they used the appearance visualization, rounding and using previous information strategies more. They stated that they encountered mathematical program activities for the first time, but they enjoyed the application process.