Algebra in upper secondary school: A study of teachers’ teaching and student learning

Alarming data from Swedish universities of technology about an increasingly worsening situation concerning the students’ mathematical skills were reported in articles in the years 1997 and 1999 (e.g., Hogskoleverket, 2002; Johansson, 1998). There are certainly various reasons for students’ problems with mathematics, but one that is not insignificant seems to be their difficulties with algebra. The current discussions in Sweden about the students’ difficulties in mathematics are forming the background for the present study.