The Relationship between the Level of Mathematical Thinking and Creative Thinking Skills among the Preparatory Year Students at Najran University

Abstract

This study aims at identifying the relationship between the level of mathematical thinking and the creative thinking skills of the preparatory year students at Najran University in Saudi Arabia. It also aims to know the effect of the secondary general point average (GPA) on the performance of students. To achieve the goal of the study, the researcher used Khatib's (2006) Mathematical Thinking Skills Scale because this measure includes most mathematical thinking skills: induction, conclusion, forced thinking, mathematical proof, logical thinking, guessing, modeling, reasoning, causation, criticism and prediction. This test consists of (80) paragraphs, so that each skill is assigned five paragraphs.

The Torrance Scale of Creative Thinking in its verbal image (A), prepared by Paul Torrance in 1966, was translated and codified on the Saudi environment by Muhammad Hamza Khan (1990). The verbal image of the test consists of 6 sub-tests: 1.Ask questions 2. Guess questions. 3. Guess the results. 4. Improving production. 5. Unusual uses. 6. Suppose that.

The study sample consisted of (85) students of preparatory year students in four sections (two control sections and two experimental sections). The control group consisted of (40) students and the experimental group consisted of (45) students.

To analyze the results, descriptive methods (mean and standard deviations) were used for the results of the pre/test and post-test in the mathematical creativity of the control and experimental groups. The T-test and the two-way ANOVA analysis of variance were used to make a comparison between the control group and the experimental group.

The results of the study showed a relationship between the level of mathematical thinking and the skills of creative thinking and its effect on the achievement of students in mathematics, and the presence of differences of statistical significance at the level of significance (α=0.05) shows the achievement of preparatory year students with a high and average (GPA) in the control and experimental groups and for the benefit of the high (GPA).

The results also showed that the experimental group was better than the control group. However, the data show that there are no statistically significant differences due to the interaction between the group and the (GPA).

Keywords: Mathematical Thinking, Creative Thinking Skills, Preparatory Year Students, Najran University