Time is an important but complex area of learning for students in the primary years. This study sought to develop a tool which would provide a clear picture of students’ understanding of what constitutes time and how time is related to clock and calendar use. Four major components of time, Awareness of time, Succession, Duration, and Measurement of time, with related key ideas, formed the basis for a Framework for the Learning and Teaching of Time. This Framework underpinned the development of a 69-item, one-to-one task-based interview to assess students’ understanding of time. Data from interviews of Year 3 and 4 students gave a clear picture of how they experienced the mathematics of time. The range of scores across all assessed areas of the Framework revealed a considerable spread of students’ understandings of time concepts. This paper focuses on the development of the Framework and interview, the interview data, and the general benefits of the use of the task-based assessment interview in assessing the mathematical understanding and thinking of children regarding time.

对于小学阶段的学生来说，时间是一个重要但复杂的学习领域。本研究旨在开发一种工具，该工具可以清楚地说明学生对什么构成时间以及时间与时钟和日历使用的关系的理解。时间的四个主要组成部分，时间意识、连续性、持续时间和时间测量，以及相关的关键思想，构成了时间学习和教学框架的基础。该框架支持开发包含 69 个项目的一对一任务访谈，以评估学生对时间的理解。来自 3 年级和 4 年级学生访谈的数据清楚地描述了他们如何体验时间的数学。该框架所有评估领域的分数范围揭示了学生对时间概念的理解存在相当大的差异。