Linking School Mathematics to Out-of-School Mathematical Activities: Student Interpretation of Task, Understandings and Goals

This article considers one class of high school students as they worked on a task given to them by a company director of a haulage firm. The article provides details of students’ transformation of the given task into a subtly different task. It is argued that this transformation is interrelated with students’ understandings of mathematics, of technology and of the real world and students’ emerging goals. It is argued that the students did not address the company director’s task. Educational implications with regard to student engagement with realistic tasks are considered.