A is for apple: Mnemonic symbols hinder the interpretation of algebraic expressions.

This study examined how literal symbols affect students’ understanding of algebraic expressions. Middle school students (N = 322) were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions in which they were asked to interpret an expression (e.g., 4c + 3b) in a story problem. Each literal symbol represented the price of an item. In the c-and-b condition, the symbols used were the 1st letters of the items (e.g., price of a cake in dollars = c; price of a brownie in dollars = b). In the other 2 conditions, c and b were replaced with nonmnemonic English letters (x and y) or Greek letters (Φ and Ψ). Incorrect interpretations of the expression were most common among students in the c-and-b condition. Moreover, students in this condition were more likely than students in the other conditions to misinterpret …
Journal of Educational Psychology via MedWorm.com