Rechenschritt

Rechenschritt is a concept in German mathematics education referring to a discrete action within a larger calculation or solution process. It denotes a single step, such as performing a specific operation, applying a rule, simplifying a term, or carrying out a transformation. The term emphasizes procedural clarity and traceability of reasoning.

In education, problems are often broken into Rechenschritte to help learners articulate and monitor their approach. Teachers may require students to describe each Rechenschritt, or to identify the sequence of steps used to reach a result. Rechenschritte can cover elementary arithmetic operations, fraction simplifications, solving equations, or applying properties like the distributive or associative laws.

An example: In the expression 12 + 9 × 3, the first Rechenschritt is to perform the multiplication 9 × 3 = 27, followed by the second Rechenschritt to add 12, yielding 39. In algorithmic contexts, a Rechenschritt corresponds to one iteration or operation within a calculation procedure.

Although related, Rechenschritt differs from Rechenweg (calculation path or method), which describes the overall strategy or sequence of steps rather than an individual operation. The concept is used in textbooks, assessments, and computer-assisted learning to make reasoning explicit.