What is the difference between relational understanding and instrumental understanding?
Question: What is the difference between relational understanding and instrumental understanding?
In mathematics education, there are two main types of understanding that students can develop: relational and instrumental. Relational understanding means that the student knows how and why mathematical concepts and procedures work, and can apply them flexibly to different situations. Instrumental understanding means that the student knows how to perform mathematical procedures by following rules or algorithms, but does not necessarily understand why they work or how they relate to other concepts.
Relational understanding and instrumental understanding are not mutually exclusive, and both are important for learning mathematics. However, some researchers argue that relational understanding is more desirable and beneficial than instrumental understanding, because it fosters deeper comprehension, creativity, problem-solving skills, and transfer of knowledge. Instrumental understanding, on the other hand, may lead to rote memorization, procedural errors, misconceptions, and difficulties in adapting to new situations.
One way to promote relational understanding in mathematics education is to use multiple representations of mathematical concepts, such as symbols, diagrams, graphs, tables, words, and manipulatives. Another way is to encourage students to explain their reasoning and justify their answers, using mathematical language and logic. A third way is to provide students with rich and meaningful tasks that require them to explore, discover, generalize, and apply mathematical ideas in various contexts.
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