The effects of strategic counting instruction, with and without deliberate practice, on number combination skill among students with mathematics difficulties

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to assess the effects of strategic counting instruction, with and without deliberate practice with those counting strategies, on number combination (NC) skill among students with mathematics difficulties (MD). Students (n = 150) were stratified on MD status (i.e., MD alone versus MD with reading difficulty) and site (proximal versus distal to the intervention developer) and then randomly assigned to control (no tutoring) or 1 of 2 variants of NC remediation. Both remediations were embedded in the same validated word-problem tutoring protocol (i.e., Pirate Math). In 1 variant, the focus on NCs was limited to a single lesson that taught strategic counting. In the other variant, 4-6 min of practice per session was added to the other variant. Tutoring occurred for 16 weeks, 3 sessions per week for 20-30 min per session. Strategic counting without deliberate practice produced superior NC fluency compared to control; however, strategic counting with deliberate practice effected superior NC fluency and transfer to procedural calculations compared with both competing conditions. Also, the efficacy of Pirate Math word-problem tutoring was replicated.

Description

Keywords

Strategic counting, Number combinations, Math facts, Interventions, Mathematics difficulties, Randomized experiment

Citation

Copyright 2010 Learning and Individual Differences. This is a post-print version of a published paper that is available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1041608009000661. Recommended citation: Fuchs, Lynn S., Sarah R. Powell, Pamela M. Seethaler, Paul T. Cirino, Jack M. Fletcher, Douglas Fuchs, and Carol L. Hamlett. "The Effects of Strategic Counting Instruction, With and Without Deliberate Practice, on Number Combination Skill Among Students With Mathematics Difficulties." Learning and Individual Differences 20, no. 2 (2010): 89-100. doi: 10.1016/j.lindif.2009.09.003. This item has been deposited in accordance with publisher copyright and licensing terms and with the author's permission.