Content Analysis of Children’s Mathematics Proficiency

Abstract

In this study, 244 children (average age: 61 months) and their parents from the Dallas and Fort Worth metroplex area in Texas were surveyed to investigate children’s proficiency in mathematics content on numbering, sizes, comparisons, and shapes. The researchers investigated children’s proficiency in mathematics associated with children’s gender, ethnic background, and prekindergarten experience. Major findings of this study were as follows: (a) no gender differences were found in mathematics proficiency in all content areas; (b) among four major ethnic groups of children, White children showed higher proficiency in all mathematics content areas than other racial/ethnic groups including African American, Hispanic, and Asian children; (c) children without prekindergarten experiences outperformed children who had prekindergarten experiences in all mathematics content areas except “numbering.” No significant mean differences were found in “numbering” between these two groups.