Teaching and learning mathematics in South Africa (SA) is characterised by serious challenges because the pass rate in Mathematics is always below the expected level. The introduction of the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) ushered in new hope that the situation would improve. However, teachers still encounter challenges when they use…

This study examined the relationship between students' (N = 229) concepts of size and scale and students' achievement in science and mathematics over a 3-year period. Size and scale are considered one of the big ideas in science that permeates disparate science and mathematics content areas, yet little is known about the relationship between…

Empirical findings have repeatedly demonstrated that students' motivation decreases over the course of secondary education. This decline in learning motivation is one of the top challenges nowadays and is relevant for policy, as well as research and practice. Taking this educational challenge into account, the chapter targets the following…

The main purpose of this study was to assess seventh-graders? algebra performance when their teachers received professional development support regarding hypothetical learning trajectories through a web-based platform. Secondly, we aimed to investigate the relationship between student performance and the teachers? professional development in…

Peer tutoring in Mathematics has reported academic benefits across many educational levels, from Preschool to Higher Education. However, recent literature reviews and meta-analysis state that students experience higher gains in Primary or Elementary Education (ages 7-12 years) than in secondary education or middle school and high school (ages…

We estimate the effects of accountability-driven school closure in New York City on students who attended middle schools that were closed at the time of closure and students who would have likely attended a closed middle school had it remained open. We find that students who would have entered the closed school had it not closed attended schools…

Many school districts in North Carolina are striving to increase proficiency levels in mathematics. With the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, mathematics standards have changed drastically and students are expected to solve complex multi-step word problems and explain how they solved them. As a result, teachers equally need a…

Spatial ability has been shown the positive correlations with the mathematics achievement of typically developing children. However, whether there is a relationship between spatial ability and mathematics achievement in deaf children and the mechanisms that underlie the relationship remain unknown. 256 deaf children in Grades 3 to 9 in two special…

School Improvement Grants (SIGs) exemplify a capacity-building investment to spur sustainable changes in America's persistently lowest-performing schools and stimulate the economy. This study examines both short- and longer-term effects of the first two cohorts of SIG schools from four locations across the country. Dynamic…

This study examined the role of learning difficulties in academic emotions and achievement across the transition to lower secondary school among 848 Finnish adolescents. Reading difficulties (RD) and math difficulties (MD) were identified based on test scores in Grade 6 and 7. Students with difficulties were identified as having resolving,…

The present study investigated whether self-estimation bias in maths competence was associated with motivational costs or benefits, concurrently and prospectively, and whether these associations depended on students' achievement levels. Participants were 2,807 seventh grade students who were reassessed after 2 years to examine the longitudinal…

The purpose of this study was to understand how a school-based personalized learning approach can help improve literacy achievement among middle grades students in a rural area. This study followed two cohorts of schools serving students in grades 6-8 in northeast Tennessee for one year each (2018-19 and 2021-22), to assess student and school…

This study examined the cross-lagged relationships between students' autonomous motivations (intrinsic motivation and identified regulations) and approach goals (mastery and performance) in school. The sample included 449 students (52% girls) in Grades 7 and 8 (secondary 1 and 2). Results showed that intrinsic motivation (IM) positively predicted…

This study is one of the first evaluations of independent (i.e., self-guided) practice in math in a developing country. We randomly assigned 4,461 students in grades 4-7 in "unaided" private schools across seven Indian cities who were using a computer-assisted learning software to: (a) a control group, in which they moved from one unit…

This study examined how attaining English proficiency and being reclassified as fluent English proficient affected achievement in English language arts and math in the first year after student reclassification in grades 3-8 in New Mexico. State policy in New Mexico bases student reclassification decisions on whether students attain a minimum…