Numeracy Education Research Articles

Pemanfaatan Teknologi untuk Meningkatkan Numerasi Peserta Didik SMP N 1 Kertanegara

Numeracy is very important for junior high school students to learn because it has a significant impact on daily life such as problem solving abilities, critical thinking abilities and the ability to apply mathematical concepts in various situations. The numeracy ability index at junior high school level in Purbalingga Regency is rated "below minimum competency" with a score of 1.73 (scale 1-3). Problems among students at SMP N 1 Kertaengara related to numeracy include students having difficulty understanding basic mathematical concepts and more complex mathematical concepts. Another problem is that the numeracy teaching methods used by teachers are still monotonous and do not use technology. Therefore, efforts are needed to increase student numeracy, one of the efforts that can be made by utilizing technology. This activity aims to improve understanding of numeracy by utilizing technology so that students' numeracy skills increase. There are 3 stages of training starting from preparation, implementation and evaluation. The results of this activity can improve numeracy skills in a more effective and enjoyable way by utilizing technology in learning.

Analisis Upaya Guru dalam Meningkatkan Kemampuan Literasi dan Numerasi Peserta Didik di SD Negeri Gemah

Literacy and numeracy education in Indonesia requires substantial attention from primary education through to higher education to support global economic progress. Although the 2013 Curriculum is designed to enhance literacy culture, Indonesia still faces significant challenges, including low literacy rates and a lack of understanding of the issue in various regions. This study seeks to investigate and examine the role of teachers in enhancing literacy and numeracy skills at SD Negeri Gemah, focusing on the teaching strategies employed and the challenges encountered. Employing a qualitative approach and case study design, this research includes detailed interviews, participant observations, and document analysis, involving six classroom teachers as participants. The study's findings reveal that educators at Gemah State Elementary School employ a range of literacy and numeracy teaching strategies, including shared reading, group discussions, digital media, and both Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and Project-Based Learning (PJBL) methods to improve numeracy skills.. The main challenges faced include the transition from kindergarten to elementary school, difficulties in reading and arithmetic, lack of student interest, and differences in students' abilities. Proposed solutions include collaboration with teachers of other subjects, the use of diverse learning media, parental support, and providing additional learning opportunities outside of classroom hours. The study concludes that diverse teaching approaches and comprehensive support are essential in improving students' literacy and numeracy skills. By implementing an integrated solution, it is hoped that SD Negeri Gemah can overcome existing challenges and better prepare students for higher education.

Nurse academics’ self-reported insights into the teaching of undergraduate nursing numeracy: A national cross-sectional study

AimsThe aim of this research was to explore the teaching of undergraduate nursing numeracy in tertiary education settings in Australia. Specifically, it explored and identified: (1) the most common basic numeracy concepts taught, (2) additional training and resources to support numeracy teaching, (3) who is best placed to teach numeracy and (4) the preferred methods of teaching medication calculations. BackgroundNurse academics are required to teach nursing numeracy to undergraduate nursing students who enter university unprepared to accurately calculate medication dosages. It is important that students understand numeracy concepts as this is then applied to contextualised clinical applications. Nurse academics teach basic numeracy; however, the literature reveals that nurse academics do not consider themselves mathematics teachers and that experts in this area are better suited to teaching this skill. There are a dearth of studies about the nurse academics who conduct the teaching and this study seeks to fill that gap by exploring firsthand the nurse academics’ self-reported insights into the teaching of undergraduate nursing numeracy. DesignCross-sectional survey. The setting was Australian universities that deliver an accredited undergraduate nursing degree. MethodsPurposive sampling was used to recruit Australian nurse academics (n = 170), sessional or permanent who currently teach all aspects of nursing numeracy and medication calculations to undergraduate nursing students. Data were collected between Nov 2023 - Feb 2024 using an online survey platform and analysed using a descriptive content analysis. ResultsNurse academics taught basic arithmetic most commonly (92 %), yet most (90 %) had not received professional development or additional training in how to teach these concepts. To assist with numeracy teaching, resources were requested (47 %) as were the need for mathematics learning support staff (82 %). The formula method was most commonly taught (91 %), however, most participants (94 %) were willing to learn and to teach other methods of calculating medications. ConclusionsThis research suggests an evidenced-based education framework be created to support and guide nurse academics when teaching all aspects of nursing numeracy and medication calculations. Building the teaching capacity of nurse academics in this vital area will enhance student competence and contribute to patient safety.

Teachers' Belief in Ethnomathematics-Based Numeracy Learning Scale: A Rasch Model Analysis

Teachers’ beliefs are a teacher's subjective perspective about teaching practices in the classroom, which influence the actions and decisions that will be taken in facilitating student learning activities. A scale can serve as an effective tool for assessing teachers' beliefs in ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning. This study aims to evaluate teachers' belief in ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning scale. The data analysis will employ the Rasch model and involve 75 mathematics teachers from junior high schools in Central Java. The teachers' belief in an ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning scale was initially subjected to content validation by three experts. The cumulative percentage outcomes are according to the four dimensions, namely teachers' beliefs about numeracy, teachers' beliefs about the role of ethnomathematics in numeracy learning, teachers' beliefs about ethnomathematics-based numeracy teaching, and teachers' beliefs about ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning, amount to 90.28% for a total of 20 items. Following this, the researchers utilized the Rasch model analysis to investigate teachers' belief in an ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning scale. The analysis involved the use of ten measurement features. Based on the results, it was deemed imperative to remove 30 individuals to maintain adherence to the predetermined criteria. Subsequently, the data obtained from the remaining 45 participants was analyzed using the Rasch model. The study of 20 teachers’ belief items yielded three items, necessitating the exclusion of the privacy construct. The results indicate that the 17 questions possess robustness, validity, and reliability, rendering them suitable for assessing teachers' beliefs in ethnomathematics-based numeracy learning.

Development and validation of assessment tools for literacy and numeracy skills in early childhood education

This study focuses on developing and validating a tool to assess literacy and numeracy skills in young children. A total of 137 children from five kindergartens participated. The tool was first evaluated for content validity through a review of existing literature and further refined by expert feedback. Then, its construct validity was examined using exploratory factor analysis, and its reliability was assessed using McDonald's Omega (ω) and Cronbach's alpha coefficient (α). The data were analyzed using SPSS to confirm the validity and reliability of the tool for each skill set. Both literacy and numeracy components showed high validity with a p-value of 0.000. The reliability for the literacy tool was also high, with Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's Omega both around 0.797. For the numeracy tool, reliability was acceptable, with Cronbach's alpha at 0.713 and McDonald's Omega at 0.705. The results confirm that the questionnaire is a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating literacy and numeracy skills in early childhood. This research contributes to the creation of two tools that can aid educators in various institutions interested in enhancing literacy and numeracy education at the kindergarten level. Further exploration of additional aspects is suggested for future research.

Investigating the impact of critical thinking instruction on writing performance: A multilevel modelling analysis of relative gain data in the Australian national assessment program

Critical thinking is an international educational and economic priority, as are writing and effective communication skills. Little is known, however, about how these skills interact or whether instruction in one skillset has transferable benefits to the other. Given declining performance in writing skills in the Australian context, evidence that critical thinking instruction improves students’ writing performance should be of interest to policy makers and school leaders. In this quasi-experimental retrospective cohort study, we utilised multilevel modelling to examine the effects of direct online critical thinking instruction on writing performance by Queensland state school students as measured by results from the Australian standardised testing scheme (NAPLAN) assessing writing structure, grammar, and spelling. Receiving critical thinking instruction correlated with significantly higher relative gains in academic performance across literacy domains and year levels compared to a comparable numeracy instruction control. We argue that these findings indicate a transfer of cognitive skills developed through critical thinking instruction to literacy domains and discuss the potential mechanisms underlying these effects. We summarily hypothesise that improving students’ ability to identify, analyse, construct, and evaluate arguments empowers them to navigate the cognitive and metacognitive demands of academic writing with greater ease, leading to improved outcomes in standardised test settings and on writing tasks more generally.

A critical turn in numeracy education and practice

Research into the nature of numeracy and numeracy practice has typically been focused on the capabilities required to participate effectively within personal, civic, and work life. In this article, we document the development of numeracy theory and practice from a functional perspective through to a view that includes evaluative and decision-making capabilities now required for informed and responsible citizenship—a critical turn. We map this development through an audit of policy and curriculum documents in addition to published research, making connections to the ever-changing mathematical demands of society. These include new demands that require critical approaches to the deployment of numeracy capabilities. We argue that this turn to the critical is central to how citizens support their societies' responses to recent and intensifying disruptive phenomena such as COVID-19 and for ensuring equity, inclusiveness, and social justice remain a high priority in a rapidly changing world.

Numeracy Education for Adult Learners: A Scan of the Field and Principles for Course and Materials Design

Additional research is needed to improve adult numeracy instruction, training for instructors, and our understanding of the feasibility and impact of innovations in these areas. The Adult Numeracy in the Digital Era (ANDE) project, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the U.S. Department of Education, seeks to develop and test an innovative, technology-enabled approach for improving adult numeracy and digital literacy instruction. We began this project guided by principles of user-centered design, specifically the principle of knowing the user’s wants and needs. We conducted a “field scan” of adult numeracy and digital literacy, by interviewing researchers, instructors, students; conducting classroom observations; and reviewing literature. We detail our key findings within two emergent themes: (1) extensive variability in learner backgrounds and readiness, instructors’ experiences, standards alignment, course structures, and classroom contexts; and (2) diversity of learner goals and the actions they and their instructors took as they worked together within the course and local policy contexts. We also identify three design principles to guide course development, suggesting that adult numeracy courses should be: aligned and relevant; interactive and participatory; and relationship-centered. These principles guided the design of our adult numeracy course, and we offer questions that current instructors can consider as they design their own adult numeracy lessons.

European Study investigating Adult Numeracy Education

Numeracy is a critical competency needed by adults to navigate their way through tasks in their personal and professional lives. Hence, it is critical that efforts are made to identify and address challenges that prevent adults from developing the numeracy skills needed to engage in society. In this research we identify the challenges facing adult numeracy eduction across Europe. A survey, which sought to investigate the main challenges faced by adult educators and policy-makers when delivering numeracy programmes, was distributed to leading figures in adult numeracy education in EU states. Twelve countries responded and challenges identified related to the lack of a standardised definition of numeracy, the lack of a standardised framework to support adult numeracy education and the need for professional development for adult numeracy tutors. In this paper we look at how these challenges manifest themselves in different jurisdictions and offer suggestions for overcoming these challenges in future.

Effectiveness of Bilingual Project-Based Materials to Facilitate Literacy and Numeracy Teaching

The purpose of this study is to find out how well bilingual project-based learning resources may improve the literacy and numeracy abilities of primary school students. Numerous researches conducted at many levels presented the effectiveness of the project-based approach. Yet, few of them address the potential benefits of incorporating it into the curriculum, focusing on both language proficiency and mathematical competence. This experimental study utilized a nonrandomized control group design involving two classes of 6-8-year-old students. A two-way ANOVA was used to evaluate the data from 39 students that were gathered through exams and paperwork. The results demonstrated that using bilingual project-based learning resources can be an alternate strategy for improving primary school students' literacy and numeracy skills.

Adult education in mathematics and numeracy: a scoping review of recent research

The paper responds to the need for understanding trends and gaps in extant research related to adult education in mathematics and numeracy, given changing skill demands and skill gaps regarding adults, and related policy, theorizing, and practice trends. This paper presents the results of a scoping review of recent empirical research related to adult education in mathematics and numeracy, published in 22 selected journals from 2019 to 2022, including 15 journals in adult education and seven in mathematics education. The results show that only 39 relevant empirical studies were found among over 2300 research papers reviewed, and that few of those focus on practice-related of adult education in mathematics and numeracy. The results provide quantitative evidence suggesting that the field of adult numeracy education is under-researched, and help to identify gaps in empirical research involving adult numeracy, including on emerging topics such as on modeling and critical interpretation. The results also point to research opportunities that can strengthen theorizing and practice in both mathematics education and adult numeracy education.

The International Crisis in Numeracy Education

The OECD recently released results from the 2022 administration of the Programme for International Student Assessment test. As other studies suggest, pandemic mitigation policies resulted in deep learning loss including in basic mathematics which forms the foundation of numeracy. Perhaps of greater concern, however, in many countries pandemic effects amplify declining performance that dates back a decade or more. Losses of two or more years' worth of mathematics education are not uncommon among developed countries. The editorial makes an urgent call for research that identifies practical steps to reverse these trends.

Unique and combined effects of quantitative mathematical language and numeracy instruction within a picture book intervention: A registered report.

Unique and combined effects of quantitative mathematical language and numeracy instruction within a picture book intervention: A registered report.

Mathematical meaning construction in language, tables, and images: The potential utility of language proficiency development in numeracy teaching

Mathematical meaning construction in language, tables, and images: The potential utility of language proficiency development in numeracy teaching

Techniques Used by Teachers in Teaching Literacy and Numeracy in Selected Primary Schools in Kongwa District, Tanzania

The study investigated techniques used by teachers in the teaching of literacy and numeracy in selected Primary Schools in Kongwa District. It examined the factors that contribute to pupils’ inadequate literacy and numeracy skills. A cross-sectional survey research design, with a sample size (N=95) was used. Simple Random Sampling and Census Inquiry techniques were adopted. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS and the Qualitative data were analyzed using the verbatim method. The study findings suggested that there were literacy and numeracy issues in these particular Primary Schools since most of the Teachers lacked the skills needed to impart these abilities the majority of the Teachers never used the brainstorming technique, and others never used cooperative learning to teach literacy and numeracy. Likewise, few of these teachers’ use playing games as a technique for teaching literacy and numeracy. The study concluded that the majority of the teachers never used brainstorming, cooperative learning, and the use of play games as techniques to deliver lessons to learners. The study recommends retraining Teachers, employing teachers who have qualifications and cooperative teaching.

Remedial Teachers’ Needs for Developing New Basic Numeracy Teaching Aids: A Needs Analysis

Appropriate teaching aids can assist remedial pupils in mastering basic numeracy skills effectively. However, issues persist of remedial pupils struggling to grasp basic numeracy skills, potentially due to the lack of suitable teaching aids tailored for Malaysia’s Special Remedial Programme. Thus, this quantitative study aimed to identify remedial teachers' needs for developing new basic numeracy teaching aids in the Special Remedial Programme. This study adapted McKillip's Discrepancy Model to guide the needs analysis. A quantitative survey methodology was used with 143 remedial teachers respondents in Melaka state, Malaysia. A validated questionnaire measured the levels and discrepancies in remedial teachers’ utilisation, perceptions, constraints, and skills regarding proposed basic numeracy teaching aids by the Ministry of Education Malaysia. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Findings showed moderate utilisation, high positive perception, moderate constraints, and high skills levels in using existing basic numeracy teaching aids. Discrepancies were identified in each construct, indicating the need for improvements tailored for better remedial learning. The results suggest modifying and developing new basic numeracy teaching aids that meet remedial pupils’ learning characteristics, fostering their creative thinking, facilitating self-directed learning activities, improving time efficiency in teaching and learning mathematics, providing various customisable teaching aid templates that are easy to reproduce with affordable everyday materials, and developing user-friendly technology teaching aids. Addressing these needs can enhance remedial teaching practices and pupils’ numeracy achievement. This study provides an important initial evidence base for designing and developing appropriate basic numeracy teaching aids based on remedial teachers’ current needs.

Digital Literacy and Numeracy Education to Enhance Students' Interest in Madrasah Ibtidaiyah

"Digital literacy involves the knowledge and skills of users in utilizing digital media, such as communication tools, internet networks, and so on. Digital numeracy emphasizes the ability to apply basic mathematical concepts and symbols to solve everyday problems in a digital context. The limited use of digital technology for accessing digital literacy and numeracy education resources is a concern for educators aiming to prepare high-quality students globally at the Ihyaul Islam Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Educational Institution. Researchers employ videos in the learning process to demonstrate that the use of video media in education can enhance students' learning interest and knowledge of digital literacy and numeracy. It is hoped that this program will help increase interest in digital literacy and numeracy learning for students. This research aims to provide an understanding of the importance of enhancing digital literacy and numeracy, especially in the development of engaging, innovative, efficient, and effective learning media suitable for children's early development, to educators and parents"

Overview of health-related numeracy education in the Australian Curriculum

Overview of health-related numeracy education in the Australian Curriculum

Revisiting tools in numeracy learning: the role of authentic digital tools

This conceptual analysis paper argues for an expansion to the definition of tools in Goos et al. model of numeracy. As the digitalization of society progresses at an ever-quickening pace, mathematical processes that were once considered only necessary for higher level occupations and tasks are now everyday requirements for successful participation in modern life and workplaces. Mathematical acts are routinely undertaken on a normal day because of the technology we use in daily life. For example, the act of driving a car has a mathematical basis; the driver has awareness of the location of the destination, reads multiple instruments and indicators including speed and fuel consumption, and interprets digital maps or navigation aids. Authentic digital tools and devices that are used in the real world that undertake mathematical processes can change the mathematics that is to be done. Rapid developments in mathematical technology, alongside the ubiquity of digital devices, the broad scope of functions and ease of use, has advanced the mathematical processes that digital tools can perform. The specificity and functionality of current digital tools can influence both the approach to and the application of the mathematics. To keep pace with society trends and demands, the tools used in the teaching and learning of numeracy should reflect the level of mathematical knowledge and skills required for successful participation in 21st Century life. Given that the digitalization of tools means they are no longer bound by time and space, they can be shared instantaneously. This agile ease of use suggests these tools may be suitable for use in the classroom. It is important therefore that educators find pedagogical ways to use real-world digital tools in authentic ways. This paper explores the current definition of numeracy tools found in literature and curricula and considers an expansion to the definition to fit with current technological directions. A model for implementation will be considered, and a suggested evaluation of the expanded model as a vehicle for learning numeracy is proposed.

Exploring numeracy teaching and learning by using ethnomathematics

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact that the cultural or everyday practices of ethnomathematics of a particular cultural group will have if they are used in teaching and learning of numeracy concepts related to geometrical shapes. It explored cultural practices, artefacts, written, verbal or visual communication messages reflecting mathematics in order to see how they could best eliminate the problems learners encounter in the acquisition of numeracy language. Data was generated using observations, brainstorming and interviews. Based on this research, the impact of using ethnomathematics in numeracy teaching and learning brings in innumerable benefits. These include promoting deep learning and allows teachers to maka use of prior knowledge in the classroom. This allows learners to recall and relate to the concepts learnt and employ them in their daily activities so that they do not to remain inert. Another impact of interest was the reclaiming of names of geometrical shapes from certain languages which currently teachers are not aware of as they are overlooked. For instance when geometrical shapes were first discussed using local terminology, it made more meaning than when taught using English used as a medium of teaching and learning in the research area.