Middle-school students are expected to understand key components of graphs, such as slope and y-intercept. However, constructing graphs is a skill that has received relatively little research attention. This study examined students' construction of graphs of linear functions, focusing specifically on the relative difficulties of graphing slope and…

This quasi-experimental study investigated how explicit instruction about multiple modes of representation (MMR) impacted grades 7 (n = 61) and 8 (n = 141) students' learning and multimodal use on end-of-unit assessments. Half of each teacher's (n = 3) students received an intervention consisting of explicit instruction on MMR in science…

Recent research demonstrates that in many countries gender differences in mathematics achievement have virtually disappeared. Expectancy-value theory and social cognition theory both predict that if gender differences in achievement have declined there should be a similar decline in gender differences in self-beliefs. Extant literature is…

This study examined the extent to which seventh- and eighth-grade mathematics teachers are aware of National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards documents, Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics and Principles and Standards for School Mathematics and agree with NCTM's vision of school mathematics as expressed in…

Previous research (e.g., Woodward & Baxter, 1997) found that Standards-based mathematics teaching provides marginal or no benefits for low achievers, in contrast with positive effects for middle and high ability students. A randomized quasi-experiment in 52 Canadian schools found that low achieving grade 7 and 8 students who received support…

A total of 450 seventh and eighth graders responded to six tasks requiring proportional reasoning and representing different degrees of concreteness. Results showed that more students answered questions correctly when concrete aspects existed, and that about one-fourth of the group was unpredictable in applying proportional reasoning at the formal…

The relationship between content readability measures and mathematics test item difficulty was measured. An attempt was made to use readability to predict item difficulty. Results from the study are noted as somewhat discouraging, with only about 11 percent of the item difficulty variance explained by the selected readability measures. (MP)

Investigates the effects of verbal fluency and curiosity in deductive or inductive treatment on tests dealing with various species interactions. Reports that neither psychomoter or written curiosity measures interacted significantly with any of the treatments and that eighth graders with good verbal ability did significantly better in the…

Middle school data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) are analyzed in this article to compare achievement difference between seventh and eighth grades. The statistical computing involves a selective subtraction of item scores in more than 40 countries. The research findings indicate that not all TIMSS items have…

Using the US national sample from the 1995 Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), this study examined students' competence levels in understanding the matter concept at grades 3, 4, 7, 8 and high school graduation, and compared them to the expectations in the US national science education standards. It was found that…

Five series of mathematics textbooks for grades seven and eight were examined to see the kinds, amounts, uses, and suggestions for writing included. Few writing activities and very few longer writing tasks were found. (MNS)

Reports a study to determine the degree to which junior high school students (N=102) adhere to myth and fable, and what differences exist in the degree of adherence among subgroups established by sex and grade level. Findings indicated no adherence to either myth or fable. (DS)

Textbook-worksheet, traditional laboratory, and problem-solving treatments produced no significant differences in achievement by gender or treatment and no difference in perception by gender, but did produce a significant difference in perception by treatment in (n=268) students, grades 7-8. (21 references) (Author/MKR)

Reports a study to examine secondary school students' (n=200) responses to two figurally and spatially similar problems from mathematics and science that require different responses before and after instruction. Results indicated that most students gave the same response to both questions. Reasons for this pattern are discussed. (MDH)