Poster #73 - Relations Between Parental Math Beliefs and Emergent Math Skills Among Preschoolers From Low-Income Households

• In Event: Poster Session 02

Abstract

Early math development predicts later achievement (Duncan et al., 2003). However, due to the opportunity gap created by systemic inequalities, children from lower-SES start kindergarten significantly behind their peers (e.g., Arnold & Doctoroff, 2003; Burchinal et al., 2003; Duncan et al., 2005). Parents’ attitudes surrounding math development may influence time spent in math activities and, in turn, achievement (e.g., Anders et al., 2012; Cannon & Ginsburg, 2008; Hart et al., 2016; Manolitsis et al., 2013; Mix et al., 2012). However, too little is known about the specific relations among parent perceptions regarding math development, parent engagement in early math activities, and children’s actual math development, especially for children in poverty, and this study aimed to advance this knowledge. We examined how parent math attitudes relate to emergent math skills in 72 preschoolers from households with low incomes.
Participants were 4- and 5-year-old children who had not yet entered kindergarten, and a primary caregiver, from diverse, low-SES communities. Families were primarily recruited from Head Start centers.
A variety of measures were used to assess parental math attitudes, most with close ended Likert scale items. Parents were asked to choose which skills are more important for their children to learn - pre-math skills or pre-reading skills. Parents described their child’s interest in math and reading, both globally and with specific activities (sorting or creating categories of objects; counting activities; and measuring and estimating activities) that were averaged. Parents were asked how often they help their children learn math both globally and through four specific activities (involvement in household chores, workbooks, picture books, and direct teaching). Finally, children’s emergent math skills were assessed using the Test of Early Mathematics Abilities-3 (TEMA-3).
Parents reported spending more time on preliteracy than emergent math. In addition, compared to pre-literacy skills, parents rated math as significantly less important and less interesting to their children. Parents’ confidence teaching math and their perceptions of their child’s math interest were positively related to time spent engaging their preschooler in math activities. In turn, global reports of time spent engaging preschoolers in math activities predicted preschoolers’ actual math achievement. These findings strengthen the case that parental beliefs surrounding math predict practices that are associated with early math development.
The project is novel in focusing on families facing the opportunity gaps associated with poverty. Findings have important implications for helping parents encourage their children’s math interest with home environments that provide engaging activities and materials. Future programs, such as Head Start parent education programs, should teach parents about the importance of early math skills, and provide both encouragement and specific strategies for engaging in math activities with their child in ways that will foster children’s math engagement, interest, and development.

Authors

• Trina Harmon, University of Massachusetts Amherst
  Presenting Author

• Micaela Keating, WGBH Educational Foundation

• David H Arnold, University of Massachusetts Amherst