Making sense of the traditional long division algorithm

This classroom scholarship report presents a group of elementary students’ experiences learning the traditional long division algorithm. The traditional long division algorithm is often taught mechanically, resulting in the student's performance of step-by-step procedures with no or weak understanding of the concept. While noting some initial difficulties, the class episodes in this article provide examples of internalization that highlight the active role of the learner in transforming concrete representations into an abstract algorithm. Several factors encouraged students to be deeply engaged in making sense of the long division algorithm: meaningful tasks based on a theoretically well-articulated curriculum, effective pedagogical measures, and dynamic class discussions.