Nickolas Harrian's Mini-Course on Conceptual Knowledge vs. Procedural Knowledge in a Math Classroom

From KNILT

Conceptual Knowledge vs. Procedural Knowledge in a Math Classroom

  • Do your mathematics lessons get a little too procedural?
  • Do you find yourself teaching students how to memorize steps?

If so, then you need to find a better balance of conceptual knowledge based questions and procedural knowledge based questions. This mini-course will give you a better idea of what balance is right for you!

Who is this for?

This course is intended for educators in the mathematics domain. However, all teachers in grades 7-12 could benefit from having some background in the difference between conceptual and procedural knowledge.


Others that could benefit from this course:

  • School Administrators
  • Professors of Education
  • Instructional Designers
  • Student Teachers
  • Board of Education Members
  • Paraprofessionals

What will you get out of this course?

Upon completion of this course, learners will be able to:

  • Describe the need for both conceptual knowledge and procedural knowledge.
  • Identify the appropriate balance of conceptual and procedural knowledge implementation.

What will the learner do?

The learner will:

  • Identify their current knowledge of procedural vs. conceptual knowledge.
  • Become educated on procedural and conceptual knowledge.
  • Apply their newfound knowledge to identify a good balance of conceptual knowledge and procedural knowledge.

Outline for the course:

Module 1: Introduction: What is Conceptual and Procedural Knowledge?

Module 2: Procedural Knowledge

Module 3: Conceptual Knowledge

Module 4: Balancing our use of Conceptual and Procedural Knowledge

Module 5: Exploration of Project-Based Learning with Conceptual Knowledge