This study examined a large, nationally-representative sample of eighth-grade students in the US to assess how the frequency of group learning activity in mathematics classrooms was associated with mathematics achievement and three measures of attitudes toward mathematics. Results showed that moderate amounts of group work in class had positive…

The proportion of eighth graders in United States public schools enrolled in algebra or a more advanced mathematics course doubled between 1990 and 2011. This article uses Early Childhood Longitudinal Study's Kindergarten Cohort data to consider the selection process into advanced middle school mathematics courses and estimate the effects of…

In this paper, I discuss Universal Basic Education (UBE) in relation to the teaching and learning of mathematics in Southern Africa. I present the status of UBE for all countries in the region and then use 3 selected examples: Botswana, Malawi, and Zambia, to illustrate the provision of mathematics in the general framework of UBE in the countries.…

The authors explored whether a testing effect occurs not only for retention of facts but also for application of principles and procedures. For that purpose, 38 high school students either repeatedly studied a text on probability calculations or studied the text, took a test on the content, restudied the text, and finally took the test a second…

In this article we want to point out as brief as possible the particularities of the transition from the pre-university education to the academic environment, by offering some examples from the backstage of the first evaluative meeting with future students. They were candidates for the Primary and Preschool Education Pedagogy specialization of the…

Existing research has yielded evidence to indicate that the expectancy-value theoretical model predicts students' learning in various achievement contexts. Achievement values and self-efficacy expectations, for example, have been found to exert positive effects on cognitive process and academic achievement outcomes. We tested a conceptual model…

The purpose of this paper is to report the results of a two-part study. Study 1 was conducted to refine and validate a survey instrument, SELMA (Hodges, 2008), used to measure learners' self-efficacy toward learning mathematics in online or technology-intensive, asynchronous learning environments. Study 2 was conducted to investigate the…

Some students leave high school never quite sure of the relevancy of the mathematics they have learned. They fail to see links between school mathematics and the mathematics of everyday life that requires thoughtful decision making and often complex problem solving. Is it possible to bridge the gap between school mathematics and the mathematics in…

This year's Brown Center Report on American Education represents the third installment of volume three and the 13th issue overall since the publication began in 2000. Three studies are presented. All three revisit a topic that has been investigated in a previous Brown Center Report. The topics warrant attention again because they are back in the…

This report summarizes an evaluation study investigating the effects of participation in the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program on student achievement in mathematics and reading/language arts, for the cohort of students who participated during the 2012-2013 school year. The report is a supplement to the Office of Assessment,…

Think Through Math (TTM) is an online, adaptive mathematics program designed to supplement classroom instruction. The program is funded by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for students in grades 3-8, and schools have the option to purchase the program for students in other grades. This report compares the STAAR mathematics achievement of HISD…

There is concern internationally that socio-economic class and ethnicity remain the most significant predictors of outcomes in mathematics; performance is often largely dependent on family income and level of parental education. Consequently the influence of pupils' socio-economic backgrounds remains a major challenge to those of us in the field…

The primary purpose of this study is to determine the influence of selected demographic and academic factors on the science achievement among middle school students in Louisiana. The dependent variable for this study was Science achievement as measured by the Eighth Grade LEAP Test. The independent variables consisted of selected demographic…

Background: Prior research has shown that students taught using "Standards"-based mathematics curricula tend to outperform students on measures of mathematics achievement. However, little research has focused particularly on the promotion of student quantitative literacy (QLT). In this study, the potential influence of the…

Public schools throughout the United States face increasing pressure to improve student achievement in math and science. As instructional leaders, principals find themselves facing this pressure head on. Drawing from a comprehensive survey of high school principals in the state of Washington (n = 250), the results indicate that a majority of…