PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Mathematics”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

A longitudinal study of mathematical competencies in children with specific mathematics difficulties versus children with comorbid mathematics and reading difficulties.

Mathematical competencies of 180 children were examined at 4 points between 2nd and 3rd grades (age range between 7 and 9 years). Children were initially classified into one of 4 groups: math difficulties but normal reading (MD only), math and reading difficulties (MD-RD), reading difficulties but normal math (RD only), and normal achievement in math and reading (NA). The groups did not differ significantly in rate of development. However, at the end of 3rd grade the MD only group performed better than the MD-RD group in problem solving but not in calculation. The NA and RD only groups performed better than the MD-RD group in most areas. Deficiencies in fact mastery and calculation fluency, in particular, are defining features of MD, with or without RD.

Aptitude↗
PubMed2004

The causal ordering of mathematics anxiety and mathematics achievement: a longitudinal panel analysis.

Using data from the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY), we aimed to determine the causal ordering between mathematics anxiety and mathematics achievement. Results of structural equation modelling showed that, across the entire junior and senior high school, prior low mathematics achievement significantly related to later high mathematics anxiety, but prior high mathematics anxiety hardly related to later low mathematics achievement. Mathematics achievement was more reliably stable from year to year than mathematics anxiety. There were statistically significant gender differences in the causal ordering between mathematics anxiety and mathematics achievement. Prior low mathematics achievement significantly related to later high mathematics anxiety for boys across the entire junior and senior high school but for girls at critical transition points only. Mathematics anxiety was more reliably stable from year to year among girls than among boys.

Anxiety↗
PubMed1996

Sex and mathematical background as predictors of anxiety and self-efficacy in mathematics.

Anxiety and self-efficacy in mathematics as a function of sex and mathematical background were investigated. This study employed an ex post facto 2 x 2 factorial design in which sex and mathematical background were classification variables. It was predicted that men would report lower anxiety scores and higher self-efficacy scores than women and that students with a high mathematical background would report lower anxiety scores and higher self-efficacy scores than those with a low background in mathematics. An interaction between sex and mathematical background was also predicted. 51 subjects were given the revised Mathematics Anxiety Scale and the Mathematics Self-efficacy Scale. Results supported the hypotheses with respect to background in mathematics for anxiety in mathematics, and all of the hypotheses were supported for self-efficacy in mathematics.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Mathematical calculation ability and mathematical anxiety of baccalaureate nursing students.

Accurate mathematical calculations are a critical skill that nurses must demonstrate in order to safely administer medications. This study was designed to investigate differences in mathematical calculation ability and mathematical anxiety for a group of baccalaureate nursing students (n = 56) and a group of undergraduate students majoring in fields other than nursing (n = 56). Results showed the nursing students had significantly lower mathematical skills test performance than the non-nursing students. No group differences were found for mathematical anxiety. These results are consistent with previous findings that indicate that nursing students are seriously deficient in mathematical skills. The greater deficiency in mathematical skills performance noted in the nursing group indicates that nursing education must consider more selective admission requirements related to mathematics. Mathematical calculation skills must be evaluated early in the program of study and educational opportunities to increase mathematical proficiency must be planned throughout the nursing program.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

How to begin a new topic in mathematics: does it matter to students' performance in mathematics?

The authors use Canadian data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study to examine six instructional methods that mathematics teachers use to introduce new topics in mathematics on performance of eighth-grade students in six mathematical areas (mathematics as a whole, algebra, data analysis, fraction, geometry, and measurement). Results of multilevel analysis with students nested within schools show that the instructional methods of having the teacher explain the rules and definitions and looking at the textbook while the teacher talks about it had little instructional effects on student performance in any mathematical area. In contrast, the instructional method in which teachers try to solve an example related to the new topic was effective in promoting student performance across all mathematical areas.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Differences in mathematics anxiety by sex, program, and education of university mathematics students in Turkey.

In this study, we aimed to re-examine sex-related differences in mathematics anxiety and to investigate the effects of two different programs associated with mathematics education applied in Turkish universities on mathematics anxiety. Mathematics anxiety scores were assessed in 221 male and 142 female students, 238 in the education faculty and 125 in the science faculty. There were no sex-related mean differences for mathematics anxiety scores, and scores were not related to faculty program. The lower mean mathematics performance on the university entry examination of the students of science faculty may be associated with the mathematics anxiety.

Achievement↗
PubMed1997

Developmental differences in addition strategies: a comparison of mathematically disabled and mathematically normal children.

BACKGROUND: Several studies concerned with task-specific strategies in addition have suggested that, when compared with the performance of mathematically normal peers (MN pupils), the performance of mathematically disabled pupils (MD pupils) is characterised by frequent use of inefficient problem-solving strategies. These studies, however, have focused more or less exclusively on single age-groups and on the youngest age-groups in particular. What characterises strategy use, as this develops year by year during the primary school stage, has not been adequately studied. AIMS: The major purpose of the present study was to investigate the character and extent of differences between the MD pupils and the MN pupils as reflected in the use of task-specific strategies for solving elementary addition problems as the pupils move up through primary school, i.e., from grade 1 to grade 7. Particular concern was with the variability within the groups of MD pupils, especially in light of the general literature showing substantial heterogeneity in the performance characteristics of the mathematically less able children. SAMPLE: The sample included 32 MD pupils in grade 1, 33 MD pupils in grade 3, 36 MD pupils in grade 5 and a corresponding number of MN pupils in each of the grades. METHODS: The pupils were asked to solve 28 single-digit addition problems on two different occasions separated by an interval of two years. The task-specific strategies used by the pupils were recorded on a 'trial-by-trial basis' and were classified as defined single variants of backup strategies and retrieval strategies, respectively. RESULTS: The pattern of development as it emerged in a longitudinal perspective in the present study showed the mathematically disabled pupils as being characterised by: (a) use of backup strategies only, (b) use of the most primary backup strategies, (c) small degree of variation in the use of strategy variants and, (d) limited degree of change in the use of strategies from year to year throughout the primary school. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with the mathematically normal pupils, the mathematically disabled exhibited a divergent pattern of development, with unexpectedly little variability within the group itself.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2006

Mathematics beliefs and achievement of elementary school students in Japan and the United States: results from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study.

Student self-beliefs are significantly related to several types of academic achievement. In addition, results from international assessments have indicated that students in Japan have typically scored above international averages (D. L. Kelly, I. V. S. Mullis, & M. O. Martin, 2000). In this study, the author examined relationships between mathematics beliefs and achievement of elementary school-aged students in the United States and Japan. The students had participated in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS; A. E. Beaton et al., 1996). The author examined several self-beliefs and used variance estimation techniques for complex sampling designs. The author identified a number of significant relationships between self-beliefs and mathematics achievement. Students who attributed success in mathematics to controllable factors (e.g., hard work, studying at home) showed higher test scores whereas students who attributed success in mathematics at school to external factors (e.g., good luck) tended to earn lower mathematics test scores. These results extend the findings of previous research results because the author examined large national samples of students in cross-cultural settings as part of a comprehensive international assessment.

Attitude↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Interactive determination of the parameters of mathematical models in planning radiotherapy of malignant tumors. 3. Method of local adjustment of the parameters of mathematical models (examples of application)].

To increase the accuracy of calculation of tolerance doses of the likelihood of radiation-induced complications in normal organs and tissues by using mathematical models, the author has developed a method for local mathematical model parameter adjustment (LMMPA) which included analysis of the structure of a mathematical model, systematization of clinical information and its goal-oriented use to determine the parameters of a model. The necessity of developing the LMMPA method stemmed from the complexity of the body exposed to radiation a system and from the quest for taking into account the impact of the system on the values of mathematical models. LMMPA may be regarded as the extension of determination of the parameters of mathematical models or as the interactive determination of their parameters that describing radiation exposures of complex biological systems. Different aspects of using of LMMPA are indicated how to apply it to the determination of tolerance doses for connective tissue, lung tissue, and the brain by using the Ellis and LQ models. The extended LMMPA is shown how to determine the parameters of a mathematical models for calculation of the likelihood of radiation-induced complications in the lung tissue.

Brain↗
PubMed2001

Does using an instrument make you mathematical? Mathematical practitioners of the 17th century.

Gaining an insight into what it meant to be a mathematical practitioner in the 17th century is difficult. People who thought themselves mathematical included navigators, sundial makers and book-keepers. For some, the simple use of instruments was construed as mathematical; for others, this was merely a 'showing of tricks'. One profession reliant on mathematics was land surveying. An analysis of this profession throws up many interesting questions about what it meant to be mathematical in early modern England.

Equipment and Supplies↗
PubMed1996

Perceptions of mathematics ability versus actual mathematics performance: Canadian and Hong Kong Chinese children.

This study compared levels of mathematics achievement between Canadian and Hong Kong Chinese children and explored the relations between perceptions of children's competence and mathematics achievement. The Canadian sample was made up of 125 4th-grade children who were randomly selected from five schools in Calgary. A comparative sample of 128 children was drawn from five Chinese-speaking schools in Hong Kong. Parents, teachers and children rated children's competence and a mathematics achievement test was given to the children. Hong Kong Chinese children outperformed their Canadian peers in the mathematics test. However, ratings of children's scholastic/mathematical abilities by Canadian respondents were significantly higher than those by Hong Kong Chinese informants. The Harter Self-Perception Profile Scale revealed that the aspects of themselves considered most important for sense of general self-worth were for Canadian children: physical appearance and social acceptance, for Hong Kong children: behavioural conduct and scholastic competence. Discussion centres on the contributions that expectations and evaluations of competence and self-worth make to the large difference in the mean levels of mathematics achievement between children in the two cultures.

Achievement↗
PubMed1982

The measurement of mathematics anxiety: the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale for Adolescents--MARS-A.

Describes the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale for Adolescents (MARS-A). Normative data on over 1,200 junior high and senior high students are reported. In addition, psychometric data that relate to reliability and construct validity for the MARS-A scale are discussed. Two factors were identified in the scale, a factor of numerical anxiety that appeared in 91% of the items and a factor of mathematics test anxiety that appeared in the remaining items. Results that show the association between high mathematics anxiety scale scores and low grade average in mathematics courses are reported on two samples of students.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

[Do cover stories of mathematical word problems influence analogical transfer in mathematics?].

In 3 experiments, we examined the effect of cover stories of mathematical word problems on analogical transfer and its interaction with the problem solvers' mathematical performance. In a first step, the principles for solving mathematical source problems were illustrated with cover stories that were either appropriate or inappropriate for the respective problem's deep structure. Subsequently, participants' performance on a target problem was measured. Results of study 1 showed that analogical transfer was influenced by the source problem's cover story. In the second experiment, this effect was more pronounced for participants with high (versus low) mathematical performance. Using some critical sentences, study 3 provided evidence that the cover stories already influenced the encoding of the target problem. The results are discussed within the framework of content-based accounts of analogical transfer emphasizing the importance of cover stories for understanding the problems' deep structure.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The interactive determination of the mathematical model parameters for the planning of the radiation therapy of malignant tumors. 2. A method of adjusting the mathematical model parameters for calculating the tolerance doses and probabilities of the occurrence of radiation complications in body organs and tissues].

To enhance the accuracy of calculation of tolerance doses, adequate doses and the likelihood of radiation complications in normal organs and tissues, a method has been developed for local model parameter adjustment (LMPA) by using mathematical models. It includes the analysis of the structure of a mathematical model, the systematization of clinical data and their goal-oriented use for model adjustment. The necessity of developing a new research line (LMPA) is determined by the complexity of the irradiated organism as a system and by the attempts to take into account the impact of the system on the parameters of mathematical models. LMPA can be considered to generalize determination of the parameters of mathematical models or their directed (interactive) determination. The strategy of using LMPA, which is based on the preset radiation treatment protocol and its respective dosage distributions in normal organs and tissues, is described. The efficiency of LMPA is shown to depend on the volume and relevance of clinical data that the radiological therapist has at his disposal.

Computer Simulation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mathematical problem-solving profiles of students with mathematics disabilities with and without comorbid reading disabilities.

The purpose of this study was to describe the mathematical problem-solving profiles of students with mathematics disabilities (MD) with and without comorbid reading disabilities (RD). The disability status of fourth-grade students was verified through testing (n = 18 MD; n = 22 MD + RD). Then a hierarchy of mathematics problem-solving tasks was administered. The results demonstrated large deficits for both groups; however, the differences between students with MD and those with MD + RD were mediated by the level of problem solving (arithmetic story problems vs. complex story problems vs. real-world problem solving) and by performance dimension (operations vs. problem solving). On arithmetic story problems, the differences between the disability subtypes were similar for operations and problem solving. By contrast, on complex story problems and real-world problem solving, the differences between the subtypes were larger for problem solving than for operations.

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Responsiveness to mathematical problem-solving instruction: comparing students at risk of mathematics disability with and without risk of reading disability.

This study assessed responsiveness to a 16-week mathematical problem-solving treatment as a function of students' risk for disability. Among 301 third graders, TerraNova scores were used to categorize students as at risk for both reading and mathematics disability (MDR/RDR; 20 control and 12 experimental), at risk for mathematics disability only (MDR-only; 5 and 8), at risk for reading disability only (RDR-only; 12 and 15), or not at risk (NDR; 60 and 69). Interactions among at-risk status, treatment, and time showed that as a function of treatment, MDR/RDR, MDR-only, and RDR-only students improved less than NDR students on computation and labeling, and MDR/RDR students improved less than all other groups on conceptual underpinnings. Exploratory regressions suggested that MDR/RDR students' math deficits or their underlying mechanisms explained a greater proportion of variance in responsiveness to problem-solving treatment than reading deficits or their underlying mechanisms.

Adult↗