The Effects of Self-Regulation,Motivation, Anxiety,and Attributions on Mathematics Achievement for Fifth and Sixth Grade Students

For this quantitative study, a total of n = 761 students (58.1% female) from selected fifth- and sixth-grade mathematics classrooms in Alabama were surveyed in order to investigate the relationships between self-regulated learning, motivation, anxiety, attributions and achievement in mathematics. Data analyses revealed that significant contributions are made by motivation and anxiety on both test score and mathematics grade for fifth grade students. Specific factors (e.g., self-efficacy, worry, other, and failure) were related to academic performance while failure attribution was significantly related to mathematics grade. As for sixth grade students, data analyses showed relationships exist between motivation, anxiety and academic performance with specific factors (i.e., self-efficacy, intrinsic value, and worry) significantly predicting both test score and mathematics grade for sixth graders. The findings underlie the importance of motivation and anxiety for students and how these constructs interact to facilitate self-regulation over the course of developing expertise in a domain, such as mathematics.     

Mathematics achievement and interest in mathematics from a differential perspective

In this article, we present results of an empirical study with 500 German students of grades 7 and 8. The study focussed on students' mathematics achievement and their interest in mathematics as well as on the relation between these two constructs. In particular, the results show that the development of an individual student's achievement between grade 7 and grade 8 depends on the achievement level of the specific classroom and therefore on the specific mathematics instruction Interest in mathematics could be regarded a predictor for mathematics achievement Moreover, our findings suggest that the students show hardly any fear of mathematics independent of their achievement level.     

The Cumulative and Residual Impact of a Systemic Reform Program on Teacher Change and Student Learning of Science

This longitudinal, five‐year study of teachers and students who had participated in a systemic reform program in science explored if (1) teacher change in practice realized during a three‐year program is sustained one, two, and three years following the program, (2) student performance on state science assessments two years following studying with teachers at this school still demonstrated significant differences from students who attended the control school, and (3) student performance continued to be enhanced for both White and Minority students. Student achievement was assessed using the Discovery Inquiry Test in Science during sixth through eighth grades and the Ohio Graduation Test was used in 10th grade. The same students completed the test in grades 6–8 and 10th grade. Students from the Program school significantly outperformed students who attended the control school on the 10th grade state assessment in science. Findings in this study revealed the ability for sustained, whole‐school, professional development programs to have a cumulative and residual impact on teacher change and student learning of science.     

Gender Differences in Mathematics Achievement Among High School Students in the United Arab Emirates, 1991–2000

This study explored gender differences in mathematics achievement of students in the last grade of high school and changes in these differences over a 10-year period in United Arab Emirates. A random sample of 2,000 students, 100 males and 100 females for each of the 10 academic years, was taken from Ministry of Education records, and achievement results for males and females were compared. Findings indicated no significant overall differences. In the last 6 years, females scored higher, although effect sizes were small. Results are discussed in the light of cultural differences.     

Collaborative Workshops and Student Academic Performance in Introductory College Mathematics Courses: A Study of a Treisman Model Math Excel Program

High failure rates in introductory college mathematics courses, particularly among underrepresented groups of students, have been of concern for many years. One approach to the problem experiencing some success has been Treisman's Emerging Scholars workshop model. The model involves supplemental workshops in which students solve problems in collaborative learning groups. This study reports on the effectiveness of Math Excel, an implementation of the Treisman model for introductory mathematics courses (college algebra, precalculus, differential calculus, and integral calculus) at Oregon State University over five academic terms. Regression analyses revealed a significant effect on achievement (.671 grade points on a 4‐point scale) favoring Math Excel students. Even after adjusting for prior mathematics achievement using linear regression with SAT‐M as predictor, Math Excel groups' grade averages were over half a grade point better than predicted (significant at the .001 level). This study provides supporting evidence that programs like Math Excel can help students in making a successful transition to college mathematics study.     

The use of concrete learning objects taken from the history of mathematics in mathematics education

This study aimed to reveal the effects of teaching with concrete learning objects taken from the history of mathematics on student achievement. Being a quasi-experimental study, it was conducted with two grade 8 classes in a secondary school located in Trabzon. The experimental group consisted of 27 students and the control group consisted of 25. Data were collected by using worksheets, an achievement exam and written opinion forms. The data from the achievement exam were analysed by using the Mann-Whitney U-test while the data from written opinion forms were analysed through content analysis. The Mann–Whitney U-test results showed a significant difference between the mean ranks of the experimental and control groups in favour of the former. Findings from the written opinion forms suggested that the students found the activities to be instructive and fun, enjoyed using concrete models in their classes, and learned from discovering the rules. It was also found that students had previously not engaged in similar activities and had only experienced the history of mathematics through the life stories and works of mathematicians and the representation of ancient numbers at the beginning of each unit.     

The Effects of Project‐Based Learning on Students' Academic Achievement,Attitude, and Retention of Knowledge: The Subject of “Electricity in Our Lives”

The aim of this study is to analyze the effects of project‐based learning on students' academic achievement, attitude, and retention of knowledge in relation to the subject of “Electricity in Our Lives” in a fourth‐grade science course. The study was conducted in a quasi‐experimental design as a “pre‐test, post‐test with control group.” In the experimental group, the unit was taught through the project‐based learning method. The measuring tools were administered to both groups before and after the applications. To perfectly analyze the “process” of the method, seven different learning assessment “forms” were administered to the students. The findings of the forms indicated that the students learn to construct their own learning and to evaluate changes in their own behavior through the application of the method. The application of different methods between both groups had a statistically significant effect in terms of academic achievement, (F(1,112) = 46.78, p = .000) and of retention of knowledge (F(1,112) = 35.24, p = .000). However, there were no statistically significant effects from being in different groups for the attitudes of students (F(1,112) = .99, p = .321). For the students, being in the project‐based learning groups resulted in better academic achievement and retention of knowledge than being in the traditional teaching group.     

Effect of inquiry-based instruction enriched with origami activities on achievement,and self-efficacy in geometry

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of inquiry-based instruction enriched with origami activities on 7th grade students’ achievement in reflection symmetry and self-efficacy in geometry. Two classes, instructed by the first author of the paper, were randomly assigned as experimental and control groups. In order to gather data, participants were administered Reflection Symmetry Achievement Test, and Geometry Self-Efficacy Scale as pre-test and post-test. The Analysis of Covariance was performed in order to answer the research questions. Moreover, five participants were interviewed to examine self-efficacy sources which are determinant of the change in self-efficacy levels. Findings revealed that the inquiry-based instruction enriched with origami activities had a significantly positive effect on students’ achievement in reflection symmetry and self-efficacy in geometry. Interviews showed that all four sources were influenced by the intervention.     

Increasing Equity and Achievement in Fifth Grade Mathematics: The Contribution of Content Exposure

This study uses a large nationally representative data set (ECLS‐K) of 5,181 students to examine the extent to which exposure to content and instructional practice contributes to mathematics achievement in fifth grade. Using hierarchical linear modeling, results suggest that more exposure to content beyond numbers and operations (i.e., geometry, algebra, measurement, and data analysis) contribute to student mathematics achievement, but there is no main effect for increased exposure on developing numbers and operations. Two significant interactions between exposure to specific content and racial composition of the classroom emerge. Specifically, as exposure to more diverse content increases, the classroom mathematics achievement gap among students in predominately Caucasian classrooms and those composed predominately of students of color appears to narrow. Findings are discussed with regard to promoting increased opportunities to learn mathematics for students in racially diverse classrooms.     

Middle school students’ proportional reasoning in real life contexts in the domain of geometry and measurement

The purpose of this study was to examine middle school students’ proportional reasoning, solution strategies and difficulties in real life contexts in the domain of geometry and measurement. The underlying reasons of the difficulties were investigated as well. Mixed research design was adopted for the aims of the study by collecting data through an achievement test from 935 sixth, seventh and eighth grade students. The achievement test included real life problems that required proportional reasoning, and were related to the measurement of length, perimeter, area and volume concepts. In addition, task-based interviews were conducted on 12 of these students to collect more comprehensive data and to support the findings of the achievement test. Findings revealed that although students were mostly successful in giving correct answers, their reasoning lacked a clear argument of the direct and indirect proportional relationships between the variables and that they approached the problems by superficial characteristics of the problems.     

The Influence of an Internet‐Based Formative Assessment Tool on Primary Grades Students’ Number Sense Achievement

This study examined primary grades students’ achievement on number sense tasks administered through an Internet‐based formative assessment tool, Assessing Math Concepts Anywhere. Data were analyzed from 2,357 students in teachers’ classrooms who had participated in a year‐long professional development program on mathematics formative assessment, 1,427 students from teachers who had participated in the program in the year prior, and 9,783 students whose teachers had not participated at all. Analyses indicated that all students in the treatment group demonstrated growth, and that student achievement was influenced by the number of times the assessment was used to collect data and make instructional decisions. Further, there was a relationship between districts’ socioeconomic status and growth, meaning students from impoverished backgrounds grew more than their peers.     

An Illumination of the Roles of Hands‐On Activities,Discussion, Text Reading,and Writing in Constructing Biology Knowledge in Seventh Grade

A previous study ( Wallace, Yang, Hand, & Hohenshell, 2001 ) indicated that seventh‐grade life science students using a learning tool known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) performed significantly better on conceptual test questions than did a control group. In the present study, the researcher studied more deeply how students utilized a variety of knowledge sources while engaged in the SWH, including textbook, teacher‐led discussions, laboratory activities, peer group discussion, and writing (including their cognitive mechanisms and the nature of their written explanations). Six case students were selected based on a range of high to low achievement according to grades. An interpretive analysis of interview and document data was conducted. Of the 6 students, 3 relied on firsthand observations from laboratory activities as their major source of understanding; these students used listening, explaining, and writing most frequently. One student relied solely on textbook and teacher statements and actively rejected laboratory observations, relying primarily on reading and synthesis. Two students integrated laboratory observations with canonical information found in the textbook and other reading sources. They were able to bridge between the different epistemological bases for firsthand observations and authoritative text and blended these into rich and detailed explanations for biology concepts.     

Relationship Between Professional Development,Teachers' Instructional Practices,and the Achievement of Students in Science and Mathematics

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between different types of professional development, teachers' instructional practices, and the achievement of students in science and mathematics. The types of professional development studied included immersion, examining practice, curriculum implementation, curriculum development, and collaborative work. Data regarding teachers' instructional practices and the amount of professional development were collected using teacher surveys. Ninety‐four middle school science teachers and 104 middle school mathematics teachers participated in the study. Student achievement was measured using eighth grade state science and mathematics achievement test data. Regression analyses suggested that for both science and mathematics teachers, examining practice and curriculum development were significantly related to the use of standards‐based instructional practices. Only curriculum development for mathematics teachers was significantly related to student achievement. Implications of results for the professional development of science and mathematics teachers are discussed.     

Relationships Between Student,Teacher, and School Characteristics and Mathematics Achievement

A variety of factors contributes to student achievement in mathematics, including but not limited to student behaviors and student, teacher, and school characteristics. The purpose of this study was to explore which of these factors have an impact on student mathematics achievement. The target population for this study was North Carolina Algebra II students. Analyses of variance models were examined for group differences and a Three‐level Hierarchical Linear Modeling method was employed to examine individual predictors of student achievement in mathematics. Statistically, significant differences were found between students of different ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses (SES), and parental education levels. No gender effects were statistically significant. All teacher‐level variables investigated were found to be statistically significant, impacting student achievement in mathematics. School size and SES were not found to significantly contribute to student achievement. More research on the relationships between these factors shown to make statistically significant differences on mathematics achievement is needed to further explain several phenomena that this research reveals.     

Preservice Teachers of High School Mathematics: Success,Failure, and Persistence in the Face of Mathematical Challenges

The goal of this study was to identify variables related to success and resilience in an undergraduate, high school mathematics teacher education program. Over a five‐year period, we tracked the academic performance and achievement motivation goals of multiple cohorts of students. Students who successfully completed their degrees had higher grade point average (GPAs) upon entering the program, earned higher grades in their first college mathematics course, and failed fewer courses than students who left the program or university. Learning and performance motivational goals did not predict success in the program. Performance goals decreased over time. Nearly half the successful students repeated one or more mathematics courses. Ten students completed their degrees, obtained a teaching license, and are teaching despite the need for multiple repetitions of the same mathematics courses. These persistent students did not differ from their peers in motivational goals. Our results suggest that although students with higher GPAs and initial mathematics grades were more likely to complete the program, students who experienced challenges in mathematics courses were able to succeed. We discuss the implications of these results for recruiting, advising, and retention of students in mathematics education programs.     

Enhancing language-responsive meaning-making processes as an epistemic catalyst for developing multiplicative reasoning in young children

Multiplicative reasoning involves the ability to coordinate bundled units on a more abstract level (“unitizing”; Lamon, 1994). As it is considered a “cutoff point” for students’ future mathematical learning, teachers must provide equitable access to mathematical conceptual understanding for all students on all mathematical achievement levels. The study presented in this paper investigates to what extent a preventive and a language-responsive instructional approach can have an effect on the outcome of students on different mathematical achievement levels. Three German second grade teachers introduced multiplication to students (n = 66, aged 7–8 years) in their classes using meaning-related phrases (e.g., “6 times 4 means 6 fours”), while teachers in the control group (n = 58) did not focus on using these phrases. Analyses of both a multiplication posttest and a follow-up test showed significant differences between the intervention and control groups on all achievement levels for both conceptual and procedural items.     

The Influence of Mind Mapping on Eighth Graders’ Science Achievement

This study assessed the influence of using mind maps as a learning tool on eighth graders’ science achievement, whether such influence was mediated by students’ prior scholastic achievement, and the relationship between students’ mind maps and their conceptual understandings. Sixty‐two students enrolled in four intact sections of a grade 8 science classroom were randomly assigned to experimental and comparison conditions. Participants in the experimental group received training in, and constructed, mind maps throughout a science unit. Engagement with mind mapping was counterbalanced with involving the comparison group participants with note summarization to control for time on task as a confounding variable. Otherwise, the intervention was similar for both groups in all respects. A multiple choice test was used to measure student gains across two categories and three levels of achievement. Data analyses indicated that the experimental group participants achieved statistically significant and substantially higher gains than students in the comparison group. The gains were not mediated by participants’ prior scholastic achievement. Analyses also indicated that iconography was not as central to participants’ mind maps as often theorized. Depicting accurate links between central themes and major and minor concepts, and using colors to represent concepts were the major aspects that differentiated the mind maps built by students who achieved higher levels of conceptual understanding.     

Calculator Use on NAEP: A Look at Fourth‐ and Eighth‐Grade Mathematics Achievement

This article summarizes research conducted on calculator block items from the 2007 fourth‐ and eighth‐grade National Assessment of Educational Progress Main Mathematics. Calculator items from the assessment were categorized into two categories: problem‐solving items and noncomputational mathematics concept items. A calculator has the potential to be used as a problem‐solving tool for items categorized in the first category. On the other hand, there are no practical uses for calculators for noncomputational mathematics concept items. Item‐level performance data were disaggregated by student‐reported calculator use to investigate the differences in achievement of those fourth‐ and eighth‐grade students who chose to use calculators versus those who did not, and whether or not the nation's fourth and eighth graders are able to identify items where calculator use serves as an aide for solving a given mathematical problem. Results from the analysis show that eighth graders, in particular, benefit most from the use of calculators on problem‐solving items. A small percentage of students at both grade levels attempted to use a calculator to solve problems in the noncomputational mathematics concept category (items in which the use of a calculator does not serve as a tool to solve the problem).     

Factors associated with middle-school mathematics achievement in Greece: the case of algebra

This study presents a subset of factors and their association with students’ achievement in school algebra. The participants were students who had enrolled in 2007 at the ninth year of Greek public education (third year of middle school). A total of 735 students participated (aged 14–15 years) from 37 public secondary schools. The sample consisted of 378 girls (51.4%) and 357 boys (48.6%). A written algebra test and a questionnaire including demographic survey items were used to collect data. The results show that attitude towards mathematics (ATM) and the current teacher rating of mathematics performance were identified as the more significant predictors of algebra achievement, contributing by 18.1% and 24.7%, respectively, in total variance of mean at the end of ninth grade.     

A review of research on science instruction for students with autism spectrum disorder

Understanding science concepts and phenomena is important for an increasingly complex global society. For students with disabilities, there continue to be huge achievement disparities in science achievement when compared to their peers without disabilities. This includes students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The current study examines and analyzes published research on science and science-related achievement for students with ASD. The authors reviewed characteristics of the research related to science achievement for students with ASD from 2000 through 2018 and analyzed included data to evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions included in the studies. Implications for research and teaching are discussed.