Word problems are a question type commonly seen in math tests and exams. Since word problems are an integral part in teaching and learning of mathematics in schools, understanding what factors that would affect students' ability to solve math word problems may help students understand where their weaknesses lie and help teachers adopt effective…

Mathematical modeling involves using mathematics to represent, analyze, and make predictions or decisions about real- world situations. Garfunkel and Montgomery (2016) elaborate on six components of the mathematical modeling process, including identifying the problem, making assumptions and identifying variables, doing the math, analyzing and…

In this paper we address the question, how do quantitative reasoning and covariational reasoning present as students build structural conceptions of real-world situations. We use data from an exploratory teaching experiment with an undergraduate STEM major to illustrate the explanatory roles quantitative reasoning and covariational reasoning play…

Best linear prediction (BLP) and penalized best linear prediction (PBLP) are techniques for combining sources of information to produce task scores, section scores, and composite test scores. The report examines issues to consider in operational implementation of BLP and PBLP in testing programs administered by ETS [Educational Testing Service].

This paper proposes a transdisciplinary framework to allow for a multifocal exploration of classroom talk practices. It draws on data from a broader study of talk in South African Grade 4 mathematics classrooms where the language of teaching and learning (English) was the home language for neither the teachers nor their students. Lesson transcript…

Energy Conservation Theory of Second Language Acquisition (ECT-L2A) (Han, Bao, & Wiita, 2017b), an interdisciplinary theory juxtaposing a physics perspective and an applied linguistics perspective, conceptualizes individuals' ultimate attainment as a function of dynamic transformation of endogenous and exogenous energies throughout the…

Given the Common Core's dual emphases on mathematical modeling, there is a need to understand modeling as a practice and content standard to develop students' mathematical modeling skills. This study of 12 students from differing levels of mathematics instruction and English Language proficiency includes analysis of their modeling with mathematics…

This study focuses on assessing the contribution of ELL services to Spanish-speaking students' mathematics learning in elementary schools. ELL students tend to have lower average math achievement at school entry and throughout elementary school. The term "ELL services" encompasses English-as-a-second-language (ESL) programs, bilingual…

Metaphors and analogies are more than figurative language suitable only for English classes and standardized test questions. They are "power tools" that can electrify learning in every subject and at all grade levels. Metaphors show students how to make connections between the concrete and the abstract, prior knowledge and unfamiliar concepts, and…

For over a decade, research studies of mathematics education in high-performing countries have pointed to the conclusion that the mathematics curriculum in the United States must become substantially more focused and coherent in order to improve mathematics achievement in this country. To deliver on the promise of common standards, the standards…

This is one of nine volumes describing the results of extensive research carried out by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) over a seven-year period. The overall aim of this extensive empirical study is to relate student competence to instructional, economic, and social factors which account for…

Modeling and data collection efforts needed to develop a test of the effectiveness of adult literacy and language training programs in increasing the earnings of trainees are reviewed. After reviewing the framework developed for the Manpower Development and Training Act and the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) evaluations and the…

The Language Assessment Battery was administered to third to fifth grade limited English speaking students in New York City. Special techniques addressed two common problems in testing these populations: (1) language tests suitable for limited English speakers change their psychometric characteristics over time as the students' language ability…

The IADIS CELDA 2012 Conference intention was to address the main issues concerned with evolving learning processes and supporting pedagogies and applications in the digital age. There had been advances in both cognitive psychology and computing that have affected the educational arena. The convergence of these two disciplines is increasing at a…

This volume contains papers submitted to the 12th Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), held in Sofia and Nessebar, Bulgaria, in June 2014, and papers submitted to the 2nd International Partner Conference, organized by the International Research Centre 'Scientific Cooperation,' Rostov-on-Don,…