An Investigation of the Association Between Arithmetic Achievement and Symbolic and Nonsymbolic Magnitude Processing in 5-9 Year-old Children: Evidence from a Paper-and-pencil Test

Recently, there has been a growing emphasis on basic number processing competencies (such as the ability to judge which of two numbers is larger) and their role in predicting individual differences in school-relevant math achievement. Children’s ability to compare both symbolic (e.g. Arabic numerals) and nonsymbolic (e.g. dot arrays) magnitudes has been found to correlate with their math achievement. The available evidence, however, has focused on computerized paradigms, which may not always be suitable for universal, quick application in the classroom. Furthermore, it is currently unclear whether both symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude comparison are related to children’s performance on tests of arithmetic competence and whether either of these factors relate to arithmetic achievement over and above other factors such as working memory and reading ability. In order to address these outstanding issues a quick (two-minute) paper-and-pencil tool was designed to measure children’s ability to compare symbolic and nonsymbolic numerical magnitudes. Individual differences in children’s performance on this test were then correlated with individual differences in arithmetic achievement. Chapter 2 demonstrated that both symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison accuracy were related to individual differences in arithmetic achievement. However, only symbolic number comparison performance accounted for unique variance in arithmetic achievement. Results also revealed that symbolic scores accounted for unique variance in children’s arithmetic scores when controlling for age, IQ, reading skills and working memory. Chapter 3 assessed the soundness of the paper-and-pencil test. Results indicated that the paper-and-pencil test demonstrated criterion-related validity, levels of convergent validity and test-retest reliability. Findings again revealed that only children’s performances on symbolic items accounted for unique variance in arithmetic scores. In Chapter 4, further evidence of the convergent validity of the paper-and-pencil test was demonstrated and again, symbolic processing accounted for unique variance in children’s arithmetic achievement. Results also demonstrated that participants’ performance on the paper-and-pencil test in kindergarten was a significant predictor of their math grade in Grade 1. Together these three studies give evidence to suggest that a simple two-minute paper-and-pencil test is a valuable and reliable tool for assessing basic magnitude processing in children from kindergarten to the third grade

P-17 Predictors of Statistics Anxiety Among Graduate Students in Saudi Arabia

This quantitative study will examine the levels of statistics anxiety among 356 graduate students in Saudi Arabia. The study will also assess a theoretical model which proposes that attitudes toward statistics, statistics self-efficacy and previous statistics experience predict statistics anxiety. Results will indicate statistics anxiety levels and show its predictors

Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction of Online Learners’ Autonomous Self-Regulation in Higher Education

Online learners are oftentimes seen as a vague and abstract “variable” with barely no human face in the context of discussing how to optimize online learning. To see and hear online learners in the joint effort of meeting their complex needs which are essential to making them striving and fully functioning, we need to look into the autonomous self-regulation of online learners. In this session, we will share how basic psychological needs satisfaction predicts the autonomous self-regulation in the learner-centered teaching and learning of higher education

A two-minute paper and pencil test of symbolic and nonsymbolic numerical magnitude processing explains variability in primary school children’s arithmetic competence

Recently, there has been a growing emphasis on basic number processing competencies (such as the ability to judge which of two numbers is larger) and their role in predicting individual differences in school-relevant math achievement. Children’s ability to compare both symbolic (e.g. Arabic numerals) and nonsymbolic (e.g. dot arrays) magnitudes has been found to correlate with their math achievement. The available evidence, however, has focused on computerized paradigms, which may not always be suitable for universal, quick application in the classroom. Furthermore, it is currently unclear whether both symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude comparison are related to children’s performance on tests of arithmetic competence and whether either of these factors relate to arithmetic achievement over and above other factors such as working memory and reading ability. In order to address these outstanding issues, we designed a quick (2 minute) paper-and-pencil tool to assess children’s ability to compare symbolic and nonsymbolic numerical magnitudes and assessed the degree to which performance on this measure explains individual differences in achievement. Children were required to cross out the larger of two, single-digit numerical magnitudes under time constraints. Results from a group of 160 children from grades 1–3 revealed that both symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison accuracy were related to individual differences in arithmetic achievement. However, only symbolic number comparison performance accounted for unique variance in arithmetic achievement. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed which include the use of this measure as a possible tool for identifying students at risk for future difficulties in mathematics

A Two-Minute Paper-and-Pencil Test of Symbolic and Nonsymbolic Numerical Magnitude Processing Explains Variability in Primary School Children\u27s Arithmetic Competence

Recently, there has been a growing emphasis on basic number processing competencies (such as the ability to judge which of two numbers is larger) and their role in predicting individual differences in school-relevant math achievement. Children\u27s ability to compare both symbolic (e.g. Arabic numerals) and nonsymbolic (e.g. dot arrays) magnitudes has been found to correlate with their math achievement. The available evidence, however, has focused on computerized paradigms, which may not always be suitable for universal, quick application in the classroom. Furthermore, it is currently unclear whether both symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude comparison are related to children\u27s performance on tests of arithmetic competence and whether either of these factors relate to arithmetic achievement over and above other factors such as working memory and reading ability. In order to address these outstanding issues, we designed a quick (2 minute) paper-and-pencil tool to assess children\u27s ability to compare symbolic and nonsymbolic numerical magnitudes and assessed the degree to which performance on this measure explains individual differences in achievement. Children were required to cross out the larger of two, single-digit numerical magnitudes under time constraints. Results from a group of 160 children from grades 1-3 revealed that both symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison accuracy were related to individual differences in arithmetic achievement. However, only symbolic number comparison performance accounted for unique variance in arithmetic achievement. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed which include the use of this measure as a possible tool for identifying students at risk for future difficulties in mathematics. © 2013 Nosworthy et al

The Impact of Family Dynamics on Academic Motivation

Kenya, like the rest of the world, is facing a major problem of poor academic performance. A new curriculum called Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) is being implemented with the hope of solving a major problem of poor academic performance. This study utilizes a quantitative, correlational, and survey research design. It will contribute significantly towards the understanding of family dynamics in Kenya and its impact on the motivation, self-control, and academic performance of students

P-16 Kindergarten Children’s Number Comparison Skills Predict Later Math Scores: Evidence From a Two-minute Test

Children’s ability to compare symbolic (e.g., Arabic numerals) and nonsymbolic (e.g., dot arrays) numerical magnitudes has been found to correlate with their math achievement. Most research, however, has focused on computerized paradigms, which may not always be suitable for quick application in classrooms. Consequently, we designed a two-minute paper-and-pencil assessment to measure kindergarten children’s ability to compare symbolic and nonsymbolic numerical magnitudes and assessed the degree to which performance on this measure explains individual differences in achievement. Children were required to cross out the larger of two, single-digit numerical magnitudes. Results from 250 kindergartners revealed that symbolic and nonsymbolic number comparison accuracy scores correlated with individual differences in arithmetic achievement. Results also demonstrated that participants’ scores on the paper-and-pencil test in kindergarten was a significant predictor of math performance in a later grade. These findings suggest the important role of symbolic and nonsymbolic processing in children’s higher-level math abilities and the importance of assessing this very basic skill in children, highlighting the potential of this tool for the assessment of early, foundational numerical abilities

Interdisciplinary Research on Ethics, Virtue and Character

Presenters from various disciplinary contexts will share how they are seeking to cultivate virtue in the classroom, in their interactions with students and through co-curricular experiences. Presentations will emphasize the faith foundation, interdisciplinary research, and conceptual models on both faith and virtue development. This presentation supports the new institutional outcome that requests undergraduate and graduate programs to foster faith development and develop theological, moral, intellectual, and professional virtues “that reflect God’s loving character.” Attendees are invited to join in discussion and application. Psychological, Developmental and Neurological scholarship on morality and virtues Relational, Sociological and Professional links from ethics, virtues and practice Civic and Historical Focus on Virtue

P-16 Predictors of Bullying Behaviors Among Adolescents in Saudi Arabia: The Role of Self-Esteem, Emotional Intelligence, and Moral Disengagement

Over the last years, there is a growing recognition of the bullying phenomena and its influence on students\u27 social, emotional, and academic lives. In Saudi Arabia, researchers conducted an exploratory study in bullying in high school and found various forms of bullying (verbal, physical, sexual, psychological/social, and cyberbullying) were reported among Saudi students (AlBuhairan et al., 2016). Among 12- to 18- year-old students who attend school in Saudi Arabia, bullying victimization was reported at 26% (AlBuhairan et al., 2017). Another study in Saudi Arabia found that bullying behavior was ranked as the first and most common aggressive behavior among school students in Riyadh, the capital city, at 31.5% (Al-Qahtani, 2009). This study aimed to investigate how adolescents\u27 self-esteem, emotional intelligence, and moral disengagement may influence bullying behavior among adolescents in Saudi Arabia. A total of 735 participants (378 male and 357 female) were obtained from high schools ages between 14 and 18 years old who attended public high schools in Saudi Arabia during the 2022 academic year. Participants completed a survey consisting of demographic questions such as gender and grade level, The Bullying and Cyberbullying Scale (BCS-A), Rosenberg\u27s Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS), and Bandura\u27s Moral Disengagement Scale (MDS). The statistical analyses utilized will involve descriptive statistics, One-Way MANOVA, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis. The findings will underline the importance of extending our understanding of the bullying phenomenon among adolescents

P-20 Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction, Autonomy Support, and Growth Mindset as Predictors of Self-Regulation in University Online Learners

This study used structural equation modeling (SEM) to explore how autonomy support, basic psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence, and relatedness), and mindsets predict self-regulation among university online learners in the United States. The number of complete and valid online survey data in use was 404. Mediation effect and moderation effect were also examined for this study