Spatial Temporal Mathematics at Scale: An Innovative and Fully-developed Paradigm to Boost Math Achievement Among All Learners

Principal Investigator: Professor Michael E. Martinez

Collaborators: Assistant Professor Lindsey Richland, Assistant Professor AnneMarie Conley, Professor Margaret Burchinal, Ph.D. Students Teomara Rutherford and Melissa Kibrick

This project, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences (IES), targets a specific program goal: To evaluate the efficacy of fully-developed programs, practices, and policies. Traditionally, elementary school students learn math concepts and solve mathematics problems through representations that stress symbols and technical language. This study investigates an alternative possibility-that some or perhaps all students can have greater access to mathematical understanding through spatial temporal reasoning with visual representations.

The project is based on ST Math, a fully developed math curriculum that uses a non-language based approach to learning grade-level math concepts, such as proportionality and symmetry. Those concepts are aligned with state standards and presented via game-like instructional software. Investigators are studying the effects of ST Math in 52 Orange County elementary schools that serve a diverse demographic, including economically-disadvantaged students and English Learners. Participating schools are in the bottom 30 percent of performance statewide on California's Academic Performance Index. Each school was randomly assigned into one of two groups based on which grades participate in the treatment-either grades 2 and 3 or grades 4 and 5. In subsequent years, the non-participating grades will have access to ST Math.

In this study, we emphasize student mathematics achievement measures by the California Standards Tests (CST). Additionally, we probe understanding of mathematical concepts and mathematical problem solving using measures administered to students one-on-one. Because motivational factors are also important, we assess student and teacher attitudes toward mathematics. In our analysis, we will test whether ST Math has particularly strong benefits for some students, such as English Learners, students with strong visual-spatial ability, or those who have difficulty learning mathematics through traditional forms of instruction.