The Effect of Student Discussion Frequency on Fifth-Grade Students’ Mathematics Achievement in U.S. Schools

Abstract

Student discussion about mathematics has been said to improve the mathematical understanding of students. Yet, some studies suggest that this may not be the case (i.e., Shouse, 2001). Therefore, the authors used hierarchical linear modeling to investigate the effect frequent discussion has on math achievement. Findings showed no statistically significant mean difference in math achievement between weekly and less than weekly discussion in fifth-grade mathematics classrooms, but significant variability in the effect of discussion on achievement was found across classrooms and schools. This indicates that weekly discussion can have large positive effects in some classrooms/schools and negative effects in others. These results and their implications are discussed in context with current literature.

Mathematical Classroom Discussion as an Equitable Practice: Effects on Elementary English Learners’ Performance

“…This study shows the significant effect that active participation in all facets of discussion can have on student performance. Kosko and Miyazaki (2012), however, who used teachers' ratings of students' participation in discussion and correlated these with students' performance on a standardized mathematics assessment, did not find a correlation between participation in discussion and achievement. We note that Webb et al's (2014) study took place in a single elementary school where mathematics discussions usually included the facets we have outlined, whereas Kosko and Miyazaki's study included students in classrooms across the country where presumably the teachers were using a range of instructional strategies.…”

“…Some researchers have looked for relationships between student level of participation in discussion and performance on mathematics achievement tests. Kosko and Miyazaki (2012) found mixed results when they analyzed the extent of students' participation. They surveyed 3,632 teachers about how often particular students discussed the solutions to math problems with other children using a dichotomous variable, "at least once a week" or "less than once a week.…”

Writing in Mathematics: A Survey of K–12 Teachers’ Reported Frequency in the Classroom

“…However, it is worth considering whether there may be other important factors affecting teachers' inclusion of writing in mathematics that have yet to be identified. Research on other mathematics pedagogy has typically identified several factors associated with more effective practice including: educational background (Croninger, Rice, Rathbun, & Nishio, 2007;Kosko & Miyazaki, 2012), professional development experiences (Desimone, Porter, Garet, Yoon, & Birman, 2002), years of teaching experience (Clotfelter, Ladd, & Vigdor, 2007;Kosko & Miyazaki, 2012), or reading professional journals (Kwakman, 2003;Littman & Stodolsky, 1998). Prior survey research on writing in mathematics has not examined the correlations of such factors with the frequency teachers report assigning writing in their mathematics lessons.…”

The Tale of Two Teachers’ Use of Prompts in Mathematical Discussions

“…Although the questioning that facilitates effective mathematical discussion has been well documented in the literature, the effectiveness of such questioning varies significantly across schools and classrooms [23]. Several research efforts have sought to examine the potential causes of such variance.…”

“…Students who engage more frequently in talking about, explaining, or discussing mathematics tend to have higher mathematics achievement scores than those students who engage in mathematical discussion less frequently [11,22]. However, such positive effects depend greatly on the teacher and school students are enrolled [23]. Therefore, factors that influence the effectiveness of teachers' facilitation of mathematical discussion and talk are of great importance.…”