Browsing by Author "Kainulainen, Julia"

Cognitive abilities, native language and mathematical skills in primary school children: is there a relationship? Introduction Mathematical abilities are important for the future of the individual, as they are related to for example education, employment and exclusion. Previous research has shown that cognitive abilities are related to mathematical skills, although the results are contradictory. According to literature, visual and verbal reasoning skills have independent effects on different areas in mathematics. In addition, working memory seems to play a major role in mathematical abilities. This study examines the relationship between visual and verbal reasoning skills, working memory and mathematical skills. In addition, we were interested in how the mathematical abilities of the children developed during this two-schoolyear-long follow-up period, as well as the impact of special education, home language and gender on mathematical abilities. Methods A total of 73 students, of whom 34 were girls, participated in this follow-up study. At the beginning of the study they were in the third grade of primary school. The data is part of the Arts@School project. The children’s cognitive abilities were assessed with the block design, comprehension and digit span subtests of the WISC-IV -test battery. Mathematical abilities were assessed using the MATTE test which includes verbal mathematical problems and the RMAT test which consist of basic arithmetic tasks. Three measurement points of the tests were used in the analyses. Linear mixed models were used in the statistical analyses. Results and conclusions Cognitive abilities were found to be related to mathematical skills. Visual and verbal reasoning skills predicted performance in verbal mathematical problems, while working memory predicted performance in the basic arithmetic test. Special education status was associated with poorer performance in the mathematical tasks. No gender differences were found in this data. Language had no independent effect on mathematical skills, but language influenced the development of mathematical skills. Finnish-speakers developed steadily throughout the study, while the development of foreign language-speakers subsided between the second and third measurements. The difference between Finnish-speakers and foreign language-speakers was statistically significant at the last measurement point. The results are in line with previous studies, with the difference that in this study, working memory predicted only performance in the basic arithmetic test and not in the more complicated word problems