Teaching multiplication with the Japanese multiplication method: An action research

This research was carried out in order to teach multiplication with the Japanese multiplication method (JAMED) to children who could not learn multiplication with the method in practice in primary school. The research was carried out with the technical/scientific/collaborative research model, which is one of the action research types. In line with the purpose of the research, it was studied with four primary school 3rd grade students in the Hani district of Diyarbakir in the 2022-2023 academic year. Research data; 3rd Grade Multiplication Success Test, Pre-Application Semi-Structured Teacher Interview Form, Post-Application Semi-Structured Teacher Interview Form, Post-Application Semi-Structured Student Interview Form, Researcher's Diary and Evaluation Activities were collected through Rubrics. In order to determine the students who will participate in the research, the 3rd Class Multiplication Success Test was applied to all students in the application class. The results obtained from the test were analyzed and three girls with the lowest score in the test and a boy with the lowest score on the test were selected. After the student selection, an interview was held with the teacher about teaching multiplication with the multiplication method, which was in practice before the application. Then, the implementation process started and multiplication was taught with the JAMED method within the framework of the action plans developed for six weeks. After each action plan, interviews were held with students and teachers. In addition, the researcher kept his own diary regarding each lesson and its effects. The findings from the interviews and diaries were analyzed by two coders. After the implementation of each action plan, evaluation activities were distributed to the students and the evaluation activities were scored separately by the researcher and the teacher with a rubric. The analysis of the data obtained from the research was carried out with content analysis and descriptive analysis. The data obtained from the 3rd Class Multiplication Achievement Test were analyzed using MS Office Excel software. The research findings showed that the students successfully performed the multiplication teaching process with the JAMED method and that the JAMED method was effective in teaching multiplication. At the end of the research; Suggestions were made that the JAMED method can be included in the Mathematics Curriculum, that teaching multiplication with the JAMED method should be started with squared paper, and that the JAMED method should be tried at different grade levels.