Abstract To read mathematics textbooks, answer questions on mathematics assessments, and understand educator and student communication, students must develop an understanding of the academic language of mathematics. A primary aspect… Click to show full abstract
Abstract To read mathematics textbooks, answer questions on mathematics assessments, and understand educator and student communication, students must develop an understanding of the academic language of mathematics. A primary aspect of academic language is vocabulary. In this study, we focused on the mathematics-vocabulary performance of students in 3rd and 5th grade. We designed and implemented a measure of key mathematics vocabulary in the late elementary grades, and we compared performance on this measure to scores from general vocabulary and mathematics computation measures. Student performance at both grades was variable, with a 62-point range at 3rd grade and a 95-point range at 5th grade. General vocabulary and mathematics computation were significant predictors of mathematics vocabulary, but the influence of these predictors differed by mathematics-vocabulary performance levels.
               
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