DESIGN AND EVALUATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING MATHEMATICAL REASONING COMPETENCY THROUGH FRACTIONS AND FRACTION OPERATIONS IN GRADE 4

Abstract

Developing mathematical reasoning competency has become a central objective of competency-based mathematics education because it enables primary school students to explain mathematical ideas, justify solutions, and solve mathematical problems through logical reasoning. Fractions and fraction operations are among the most conceptually demanding topics in Grade 4 mathematics and provide important opportunities for fostering students' mathematical reasoning. This study investigated the current status of teaching fractions and fraction operations to develop mathematical reasoning competency and established an empirical foundation for designing instructional strategies. A mixedmethods research design was employed, including questionnaire surveys, classroom observations, interviews, and document analysis. The study involved 16 Grade 4 teachers and 205 Grade 4 students from two primary schools in Bac Ninh Province, Vietnam. The findings revealed that all participating teachers recognized the importance of developing mathematical reasoning competency, and most reported that they regularly integrated this objective into mathematics instruction. However, classroom practice remained largely focused on basic mathematical thinking and procedural problem solving, while opportunities for students to construct mathematical arguments and justify their reasoning were comparatively limited. Traditional instructional approaches were still widely adopted despite teachers' awareness of competency-based teaching. These findings demonstrate the need for systematic instructional strategies that support teachers in integrating mathematical reasoning into the teaching of fractions and fraction operations. The study provides practical evidence for improving competencybased mathematics instruction and promoting mathematical reasoning competency among Grade 4 students