The Effectiveness of Using the SCAMPER Strategy in Teaching Mathematics to Develop Problem-Solving Skills among Sixth-Grade Primary School Students

Abstract

The current research aimed to reveal the effectiveness of teaching mathematics using the SCAMPER strategy to develop problem-solving skills among sixth-grade primary school students in the Algebra and Angles in Geometric Shapes units. To achieve this objective, the foundations for employing the SCAMPER strategy were identified, and a teacher's guide for teaching the two prescribed units was prepared accordingly. Additionally, a problem-solving skills test was developed. The research adopted a quasi-experimental design with two groups: an experimental group and a control group, with pre-test and post-test measurements. The research sample consisted of (50) male and female students in the sixth grade of primary school. They were divided into two groups: one experimental group of (25) students who studied using the SCAMPER strategy, and one control group of (25) students who studied using the conventional method. The data were statistically analyzed using the "t" test for two independent samples to detect the significance of differences between the means, and the eta-squared (η²) coefficient to calculate the effect size. The results indicated the effectiveness of the SCAMPER strategy in developing problem-solving skills in favor of the experimental group, with a very large effect size for the first hypothesis (d = 1.47) and for the second hypothesis (d = 1.66). In light of these results, the study recommended employing the SCAMPER strategy in teaching mathematics at the primary stage.