Word problems require students to read a language-based problem, identify necessary information to answer a prompt, and perform calculation(s) to develop a problem solution. Solving word problems proves particularly challenging for students with mathematics difficulties because skill in reading, interpretation of language, and mathematics is…

Mathematical relationships are crucial elements to consider for learning mathematics. However, too often students pay more attention to the calculations to be done rather than the reasons for doing them. Relying on the relational paradigm to support elementary school students, we proposed two specially designed tasks to help students recognize and…

This study aimed to develop a set of PISA-like mathematics problems on uncertainty and data content using football as a context which was valid, practical and had potential effects on students' mathematical literacy ability. The method used in this study is design research with development studies type which had two stage: the preliminary and…

The purpose of this study was to explore the variations in students' achievement on computational fluency assessments and variations in strategies for solving computation problems. Computational fluency was defined as a student's ability to compute flexibly, accurately, efficiently, and appropriately. Seven- and eight-year-old students completed…

Although algebra is a prerequisite for higher mathematics, few studies have examined the mathematical and cognitive capabilities that contribute to the development of algebra word problems solving skills. We examined changes in these relations from second to ninth grades. Using a cross-sequential design that spanned 4 years, children from 3…

The purpose of this study was to explore interactions between limited English proficiency (LEP) status, as a function of risk status (low math performance at the start of the school year), on computation and word-problem-solving performance. Among 260 first-grade students, classified as at-risk (AR) or not-at-risk (NAR) for math disability, we…

Competence with fractions is foundational to acquiring more advanced mathematical skills. However, achieving competency with fractions is challenging for many students, especially for those with mathematics learning difficulties who often lack foundational skill with whole numbers. Teaching fractions is also challenging for many teachers as they…

This narrative review provides an overview of the research literature on the effectiveness of mnemonics in mathematics instruction for students with learning disabilities in a K-12 classroom. Eleven studies were identified in refereed journal articles and doctoral dissertations from 1975 to December 2018 that met the inclusion criteria. Overall…

The editors of Mathematics Teacher appreciate the interest of readers and value the views of those who write in with comments. The editors ask that name and affiliation including email address be provided at the end of their letters. This September 2016 Reader Reflections, provides reader comments on the following articles: (1) "Innocent…

Problem-posing is well known as an effective activity to learn problem-solving methods. Although the activity is considered in contributing to the understanding of the problem's structure, it is not clear how learners could understand it through the activity. This study proposes a method to offer a visual representation for analyzing the…

Using visuals is a well-known strategy to teach emergent bilinguals (EBs). This study examined how preservice teachers (PSTs) implemented visuals to help EBs understand mathematical problems and how an innovative intervention cultivated PSTs' capability of using visuals for EBs. Four middle school mathematics PSTs were engaged in a field…

Purpose:In an attempt to explore item characteristics that behave differently between boys and girls, this comparative study examines gender Differential Item Functioning in a school culture that is noted to be 'thriving' mathematically. Methodology: Some 24 grade eight mathematics items from TIMSS 2003 and TIMSS 2007 released items, with equal…

Many general and special education teachers teach mathematics word problems by defining problems as a single operation and linking key words to specific operations. Unfortunately, teaching students to approach word problems in these ways discourages mathematical reasoning and frequently produces incorrect answers. This article lists eight common…

One important goal of teacher education has been to improve pre-service teachers' understanding of the connection between real-life events and mathematics. Toward this goal, we designed two mathematics teacher education courses based on the Models-and-Modeling Perspective. This study presents a three-tier modeling investigation of (a) pre-service…

Previous studies have repeatedly shown that children often incorrectly use an additive model for multiplicative word problems, and a multiplicative model for additive word problems. The present study aimed to investigate which model upper primary school children tend to choose in word problems that are open to "both" ways of reasoning.…