A concept-based learning progression for rational numbers

Rational number understanding is viewed as fundamental and critical to developing future knowledge and skills, and is therefore essential for success in the 21st century world. This report describes a provisional learning progression for rational numbers, specifically as embodied in fractions and decimals, that was designed to be useful towards the development of formative assessment

Take a Giant Step: A Blueprint for Teaching Young Children in a Digital Age

Calls for enhancing early childhood education and teacher preparation and development by incorporating digital learning and highlights best practices, policy and program trends, and innovative approaches. Outlines goals for 2020 and steps to achieve them

The Impact of Early Algebra: Results from a Longitudinal Intervention

In this paper, we provide evidence of the impact of early algebra (EA) over time. We document this impact in the following ways: (a) by showing the performance over time of an experimental group of 15 children on an algebra assessment, from 3rd to 5th grade; and (b) by showing how the performance on an algebra assessment of children from an experimental group differs from the performance of a group of comparison students from their same elementary school who did not receive EA instruction from 3rd to 5th grade. We compared students’ scores through comparisons of means, correspondence factorial analyses, and hierarchical analyses. Our results highlight the positive impact of an early access to algebra, indicating that this early access is associated, when we compare 3rd graders to 5th graders, with increased scores on items that involve inequalities and graphs. When comparing experimental to comparison-group students we find increased scores on items that involve variables, functional relations, intra-mathematical contexts, tables, and algebraic expressions. The study adds to a body of literature that has been arguing for EA as well as a need to thread algebra throughout the mathematics curriculum, starting in the earliest grades

Assessment of Mathematical Competence by the Transcriptions of Formulas: An Exploration of Spatial and Temporal Metrics

Previous studies have shown that temporal metrics of writing behavior in simple transcription tasks have some potential for use in the assessment of student learning. This study explores whether spatial metrics, specifically the distance between written strokes, may also have potential for the assessment of competence. Students, N=219, copied sets of equations with different spatial layouts and equation complexity. Although students’ level of competence is manifest to an extent in distributions of distance metrics, the effects of spacing are weaker than with temporal metrics. Stimuli format contrary to the standard mathematical spacing formats may differentiate high and low competent students