Assess accuracy and strategy use on one-half fraction items at the end of Grades 4 and 5 to identify students needing additional fraction support¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 associational), q3 · 1 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The authors propose a screening strategy grounded in their finding that one-half items are easier than non-half items for most children but not for those with MLD. They write that "assessing accuracy and strategy use on one-half items at the conclusion of 4th and 5th grades may be a relatively efficient way to identify children in need of additional instructional support with fraction concepts and to assess readiness to learn more advanced fraction concepts". The strategy pairs accuracy measurement with querying the strategies children use, since the article argues strategy use may be more informative than overall accuracy for children with MLD.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Administer one-half fraction magnitude comparison items at the end of Grade 4 and Grade 5

Constraints¶

• The article suggests but does not prove that one-half knowledge supports later learning of non-half fractions; the transfer interpretation is the authors' own

Target Learners¶

• Students in Grades 4 and 5, especially those with low mathematics achievement or mathematics learning disability

Target Learning Goals¶

• Understanding of fraction magnitude and readiness for more advanced fraction concepts

Claims¶

• The one-half advantage in fraction comparison emerges by Grade 4 for TA children and Grade 5 for LA children, but only at Grade 7 for children with MLD, who never exceed ~75% accuracy on one-half items [+M]
• Children with MLD are less accurate than TA peers on symbolic fraction magnitude comparisons from Grades 4 to 8 and than LA peers from Grade 5, with no group differences in growth rates on the total score [+M]

Related Strategies¶

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Mazzocco, M. M. M., Myers, G. F., Lewis, K. E., Hanich, L. B., & Murphy, M. M. (2013). Limited knowledge of fraction representations differentiates middle school students with mathematics learning disability (dyscalculia) vs. low mathematics achievement. Journal of experimental child psychology, 115(2), 371-387. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2013.01.005