The recognition of making provision for individual difference in learning potential

and performance has been a major curriculum problem in the shaping of the

secondary school program me in mathematics. There are wide variations in

ability, ranging from the academically gifted to the very slow learners.

Individual differences in ability are not great enough to warrant differences in curriculum, except in unusual circumstances such as major learning disability or extraordinary talent.

Individual differences in entering knowledge are great enough to warrant differences in what is offered to students at a particular grade level.

Individual differences in willingness to work are enough to overcome differences in entering knowledge and should be taken into consideration in any placement of students.

Individual differences in learning style are not able to be predicted with any certainty and do not warrant differences in instruction aimed at certain students, except in unusual circumstances such as learning disability.

Every mathematics course should allow for individual differences in interest by including a wide variety of activities and contexts which bring out the brilliance, surprise, applicability, and structure of mathematics. Differences in interest in mathematics should be handled in classrooms via projects and other activities in which students are given choices, and, for those with great interest, outside the classroom via mathematics clubs and, for some, mathematics contests.

Individual differences in social, family and cultural background, even though great and diverse, are not enough to warrant differences in curriculum. But instruction needs to take into account these differences, because context is critical in the understanding of mathematics, the contributions of various cultures are important in conveying the universality of mathematical ideas, and because it helps students to develop a sense of ownership of these ideas.

The same individual differences that apply to students also apply to teachers. Teachers differ in ability, entering knowledge, willingness to work, interests, teaching style, and background virtually as much as students do.

Preference and Attitudes

Intelligence quotient

Prior knowledge and Experience

Learning Strategies

Personality

Gender based differences

Use of audiovisual aids and practical work

Ensuring students understanding

Using mathematics for fun and recreation

Improving problem-solving ability

Emphasizing the practical application of mathematics

http://cte-blog.uwaterloo.ca/?p=2348 - center for excellence http://books.google.co.in/books?id=Fxp0eSHpS-

IC&pg=PA136&lpg=PA136&dq=individual+differences+in+learning+mathematics&source=bl&ots=tIY1Qj7woA&sig=zNPcBs3Pil8fEGS74JJY4HrSLH0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=w1veUomRKIX5rQfs-YGQDg&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=individual%20differences%20in%20learning%20mathematics&f=false - Learning Mathematics: Issues, Theory and Classroom Practice

http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/748448?uid=3738256&uid=2&ui

d=4&sid=21103276911691 Some Aspects of Individual Differences in Mathematics Instruction http://ucsmp.uchicago.edu/resources/conferences/1993-11-13/ -

Individual Differences in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics