Distinct roles of cognitive and mathematics skills in different levels of mathematics development

IF 9 1区心理学 Q1 PSYCHOLOGY, EDUCATIONAL

Learning and Individual Differences Pub Date : 2025-02-10 DOI:10.1016/j.lindif.2025.102645

Charles Chiu Hung Yip , Xiangzi Ouyang , Eason Sai-Kit Yip , Christine Kong-Yan Tong , Terry Tin-Yau Wong

{"title":"Distinct roles of cognitive and mathematics skills in different levels of mathematics development","authors":"Charles Chiu Hung Yip , Xiangzi Ouyang , Eason Sai-Kit Yip , Christine Kong-Yan Tong , Terry Tin-Yau Wong","doi":"10.1016/j.lindif.2025.102645","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mathematics development draws on various cognitive and mathematics skills, which may have distinct influence on students at different achievement levels. The current study explored how students' skill profiles contribute to their mathematics achievement levels. Two-hundred-and-seventy-two fourth graders completed assessments on various cognitive and mathematics abilities. Latent profile analysis identified four math achievement classes, namely, mathematics learning disability (MLD), average achievers, high achievers, and mathematical giftedness. Multinomial logistic regression further revealed that, compared to average achievers, students struggling with fraction magnitude understanding and number sentence construction in word problems are more likely to have MLD, students with better spatial skills and fraction magnitude understanding are more likely to be high achievers, and students with better arithmetic principle understanding are more likely to be mathematically gifted. The current findings illustrate the unique cognitive characteristics of students at different achievement levels, which allow practitioners to make level-specific adjustments to their teaching.</div></div><div><h3>Education relevance statement</h3><div>The current study identified four mathematics achievement classes and examined the skills that contributed to the cognitive profile of these ability groups. Our results revealed the critical skills that differentiated between these achievement groups. Notably, number sentence construction and fraction number line differentiated students with mathematics learning difficulties from average performers. Understanding of abstract arithmetic principles was also found to be the distinctive skill for the highest achievers. The findings informed assessment and subsequent intervention for learners at different mathematics achievement levels. Further research and educational practices (remediation, curriculum differentiation, acceleration) could be developed to tailor their unique learning needs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48336,"journal":{"name":"Learning and Individual Differences","volume":"119 ","pages":"Article 102645"},"PeriodicalIF":9.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-02-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Learning and Individual Differences","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1041608025000214","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, EDUCATIONAL","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Mathematics development draws on various cognitive and mathematics skills, which may have distinct influence on students at different achievement levels. The current study explored how students' skill profiles contribute to their mathematics achievement levels. Two-hundred-and-seventy-two fourth graders completed assessments on various cognitive and mathematics abilities. Latent profile analysis identified four math achievement classes, namely, mathematics learning disability (MLD), average achievers, high achievers, and mathematical giftedness. Multinomial logistic regression further revealed that, compared to average achievers, students struggling with fraction magnitude understanding and number sentence construction in word problems are more likely to have MLD, students with better spatial skills and fraction magnitude understanding are more likely to be high achievers, and students with better arithmetic principle understanding are more likely to be mathematically gifted. The current findings illustrate the unique cognitive characteristics of students at different achievement levels, which allow practitioners to make level-specific adjustments to their teaching.

Education relevance statement

The current study identified four mathematics achievement classes and examined the skills that contributed to the cognitive profile of these ability groups. Our results revealed the critical skills that differentiated between these achievement groups. Notably, number sentence construction and fraction number line differentiated students with mathematics learning difficulties from average performers. Understanding of abstract arithmetic principles was also found to be the distinctive skill for the highest achievers. The findings informed assessment and subsequent intervention for learners at different mathematics achievement levels. Further research and educational practices (remediation, curriculum differentiation, acceleration) could be developed to tailor their unique learning needs.

查看原文本刊更多论文

认知和数学技能在不同数学发展水平中的不同作用

数学发展需要各种认知和数学技能，这些技能对不同成绩水平的学生可能有不同的影响。目前的研究探讨了学生的技能概况如何影响他们的数学成绩水平。272名四年级学生完成了各种认知和数学能力的评估。潜在特征分析将数学成就分为四类，即数学学习障碍（MLD）、平均成长者、高成长者和数学天才。多项逻辑回归进一步揭示，与成绩一般的学生相比，在字词问题中分数大小理解和数字句子构建方面存在困难的学生更容易出现MLD，空间技能和分数大小理解能力较好的学生更容易成为高成就学生，而算术原理理解能力较好的学生更容易成为数学天才。目前的研究结果说明了不同成就水平的学生的独特认知特征，这使得从业者可以根据他们的教学水平进行调整。教育相关性陈述当前的研究确定了四个数学成就等级，并检查了对这些能力组的认知概况有贡献的技能。我们的研究结果揭示了这些成就组之间存在差异的关键技能。值得注意的是，数句结构和分数数线对数学学习困难学生和一般学生有明显的区别。对抽象算术原理的理解也被发现是最高成就者的独特技能。研究结果为不同数学成绩水平学习者的评估和后续干预提供了依据。可以开展进一步的研究和教育实践（补救、课程差异化、加速），以适应他们独特的学习需求。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Learning and Individual Differences PSYCHOLOGY, EDUCATIONAL-

CiteScore

6.60

自引率

2.80%

发文量

期刊介绍： Learning and Individual Differences is a research journal devoted to publishing articles of individual differences as they relate to learning within an educational context. The Journal focuses on original empirical studies of high theoretical and methodological rigor that that make a substantial scientific contribution. Learning and Individual Differences publishes original research. Manuscripts should be no longer than 7500 words of primary text (not including tables, figures, references).