Summary: A new study reveals a new intervention that significantly improves math performance among third-grade English language learners. By integrating key concepts from the science of reading and mathematics, the intervention, delivered over 10 weeks with twice-weekly sessions, demonstrated notable improvements in comprehension, visualization, and problem-solving skills compared to general education.
Research highlights the effectiveness of combining direct teaching methods with culturally responsive practices to meet the complex demands of word problems. This approach not only combines cognitive skills, but also integrates cultural relevance, making it a powerful tool for improving educational outcomes in diverse classrooms.
Key facts:
- Integrated Instructional Approach: The intervention exclusively combines reading and mathematical comprehension strategies, with a focus on decoding, phonological awareness and numeracy, to improve understanding and application in solving mathematical problems.
- Culturally Responsive Teaching: Using culturally familiar contexts, such as using the term “quesadilla” instead of “pastry,” helps improve understanding and engagement among students from diverse backgrounds.
- Proven effectiveness: The study showed that this approach significantly improved English learners’ problem-solving skills, indicating its potential as an effective evidence-based practice for improving mathematics education.
Source: University of Kansas
New research from the University of Kansas found that a reading and math science-based intervention effectively helped English learners increase their comprehension, visualize and synthesize information, and make connections that significantly improved their math performance.
The intervention, carried out for 30 minutes, twice a week, for 10 weeks, with 66 third-grade English language students who had learning difficulties in mathematics, improved the students’ performance when compared to students who received general instruction.
This indicates that emphasizing the cognitive concepts involved in the sciences of reading and mathematics is key to helping students improve, according to the researchers.
“Word problem solving is influenced by both the science of reading and the science of mathematics. The main components include number sense, decoding, language comprehension, and working memory.
“Using direct and explicit teaching methods improves understanding and allows students to effectively connect these skills to solve mathematical problems.
“This integrated approach ensures that students are equipped with the tools they need to navigate the linguistic and numerical demands of word problems,” said Michael Orosco, professor of educational psychology at KU and lead author of the study.
The intervention incorporates strategic reading and math comprehension instruction, focus and decoding, phonological awareness, vocabulary development, inferential thinking, contextualized learning, and numeracy.
“It is proving to be one of the most effective evidence-based practices available for this growing population,” Orosco said.
The study, co-written with Deborah Reed of the University of Tennessee, was published in the journal Research and practice on learning disabilities.
For the research, trained tutors developed the intervention, developed by Orosco and colleagues based on cognitive and culturally responsive research conducted over a 20-year period.
One example of an intervention session tested in the study included a script in which a tutor looked at a word problem that explained that a person made a quesadilla for his friend Mario, giving him a quarter of it, and then needed students to determine how much was left. . .
The tutor first asked students if they remembered a class where they made quesadillas, what shape they were, and demonstrated concepts by drawing a circle on the board, dividing it into four equal parts, asking students to repeat terms such as numerator and denominator, and explaining that when a question asks how much is left, subtraction is necessary.
Students also collaborated with peers to practice using important vocabulary in sentences. The approach helps students learn and understand mathematical concepts while being culturally responsive.
“Word problems are complex because they require translating words into mathematical equations, and this involves integrating the science of reading and mathematics through language concepts and differentiated instruction,” Orosco said.
“We have not extensively tested these approaches with this group of children. However, we are establishing an evidence-based framework that helps them develop foundational knowledge and connect it to their cultural contexts.”
Orosco, director of KU’s Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Neuroscience, emphasized the critical role of language in word problems, highlighting the importance of using culturally familiar terms.
For example, replacing “pastry” with “quesadilla” could significantly affect understanding for students from diverse backgrounds. Failure to understand the initial scenario can impede subsequent problem-solving efforts.
The study proved effective in improving students’ problem-solving skills, despite covariates including an individual’s basic calculation skills, fluid intelligence, and reading comprehension scores. This finding is critical because, although ideally all students would start out on equal footing and there would be little variation within a classroom, in reality, covariates exist and are common.
The study relied on tutors trained to deliver the intervention, and its effectiveness should be tested with practicing teachers, the authors wrote.
Orosco said professional development to help teachers acquire the skills is necessary and it is vital that teacher preparation programs also train future teachers with those skills. And helping elementary-level students is necessary to help ensure success in future higher-level math classes like algebra.
The research builds on the work of Orosco and colleagues in understanding and improving mathematics instruction for English learners.
Future work will continue to examine the role of cognitive functions such as working memory and brain science, as well as the potential integration of artificial intelligence into mathematics teaching.
“Teaching the comprehension strategy helps students make connections, ask questions, visualize, synthesize, and monitor their thinking about word problems,” Orosco and Reed wrote.
“Finally, applying comprehension strategy instruction supports ELs in integrating their reading, language, and math cognition…Focusing on relevant language in word problems and providing collaborative support significantly improved students’ solution accuracy .”
About this education and learning research news
Author: Mike Krings
Source: University of Kansas
Contact: Mike Krings – University of Kansas
Image: Image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original research: Free access.
“Supplemental Intervention for Third-Grade English Learners with Significant Problem-Solving Challenges” by Michael Orosco et al. Research and practice on learning disabilities
Abstract
Supplemental Intervention for Third Grade English Learners With Significant Problem Solving Challenges
This study examined the effect of teaching the comprehension strategy on third grade students’ performance in word problem solving.
Supplemental intervention included modeling how to read the word problem to identify and restate the question, distinguishing relevant from irrelevant information, and collaborating with peers in applying the strategy steps to solve word problems.
Sixty-six students who demonstrated learning difficulties in mathematics (MLD) participated in the intervention for 30 minutes, twice a week, for 10 weeks (20 sessions in total).
Trained tutors delivered scripted lessons and checked students’ understanding by asking questions orally and providing feedback on their answers. Students in the control group (n= 73) received only general instruction.
The results of the multilevel regression indicated a significant effect in favor of the treatment, suggesting that the approach can facilitate the development of problem-solving skills among students with MLD. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
