Learning Mathematics With Technology: The Influence of Virtual Manipulatives on Different Achievement Groups

• In Event: Roundtable Session 15
  In Roundtable Session: Inquiry and Evaluation in Collaborative School University Partnerships

Abstract

This study examined the influence of virtual manipulatives on different achievement groups in four fifth-grade classrooms. During a unit on fractions, one low, two average, and one high achieving group participated in two instructional treatments (virtual and physical manipulatives). Data sources included pre- and post-tests and videotaped sessions.
Test results indicated a statistically significant overall gain, with follow-up t-tests indicating a statistically significant gain for the low achieving group, but only numerical gains for the other groups. Results indicated that different achievement groups experienced the virtual manipulatives in different ways, with the high achieving group recognizing patterns quickly, while the average and low achieving groups relied on visual models while they methodically worked through processes and procedures with mathematical symbols.

Authors

• Patricia S. Moyer-Packenham, Utah State University

• Jennifer M. Suh, George Mason University