Underlying Heterogeneity in Students' Fraction Arithmetic Development: Growth and Errors During the Intermediate Grades

• In Event: Understanding Fractions

Abstract

Fraction arithmetic is an important yet challenging topic in mathematics education. To understand students’ fraction arithmetic trajectories, the present longitudinal study documented students’ growth during the intermediate grades over multiple time points. Three empirically distinct growth classes were revealed: (Class-1) consistently accurate, (Class-2) started low but grew over time, and (Class-3) consistently inaccurate. Age and calculation fluency predicted membership in Class-1 and 2 relative to Class-3. Error analyses revealed Class-3 students displayed more whole number bias errors compared to the other groups and demonstrated a mixture of conceptually inappropriate procedures. Results indicate that many students make little to no progress in fraction arithmetic, despite three years of instruction and thus are at high risk for math failure.

Authors

• Kelly-Ann Gesuelli, University of Notre Dame
  Presenting Author

• Nancy C. Jordan, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author