Collaborative Research: Promoting Math Skills through Playful Communication in the Home Environment

合作研究：通过家庭环境中的有趣交流来提高数学技能

• 批准号: 2301245
• 负责人: Geetha Ramani
• 金额: $ 117.99万
• 依托单位: University of Maryland, College Park
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-05-01 至 2026-04-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2301245&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Promoting; Math; Skills; Collaborative; Research; Promoting; Math; Skills

Having a strong foundation in early mathematical knowledge is of critical importance for children’s later mathematical achievement and moving forward in STEM fields. One context for promoting early mathematical development is the home environment. Informal activities and interactions with adults can provide children with extensive mathematical information through the communication about math that families provide to their young children. Additionally, numerous factors can influence children’s early math-related experiences at home. For example, parents’ mindsets and beliefs about child development can impact how frequently they engage in math-related activities with their children. The goal of the project is to examine the benefits of parent-focused math-related communication trainings to improve children’s math skills. The focus of the research is on families from lower-income backgrounds because children from higher-income households consistently outperform their peers from lower-income households in mathematics, even as early as preschool. The family trainings will build on the strengths of families by enhancing the math-related talk and gestures that families use during their daily routines and play with their children. Findings from the research will provide insight into whether and how math-related communication at home can promote learning and will produce low-cost tools to benefit early mathematical development for young children. The proposed study will examine the benefits of math-related communication trainings with low-income families from diverse backgrounds (n = 300). The central aims are to examine: 1) whether home-based trainings over a 3-month period that focus on the benefits of math communication (with and without gesture) will promote the math talk and gestures used by parents and their preschool-age children; 2) whether the home-based trainings improve preschool children’s math skills and whether these improvements are stable 3 months later; 3) whether the effects of the math communication trainings differ for families where parents hold different mindsets about the malleability of math skills. In the study, families will receive one of three trainings that focus on promoting both math-related talk and gestures, math-related talk only, or talk during play. The first two trainings will provide families with tools and information through a video and materials for incorporating math communication into play and daily activities with their children. The changes in math talk and gesture use for parents and children over the 3-month intervention period will be examined during parent-child interactions. Children’s early math skills also will be assessed prior to the training, after the 3-month intervention period, and again in a 3-month delayed posttest. Moreover, an individual differences approach will be taken to determine whether the effectiveness of the trainings differs for parents (and children of parents) who hold varied mindsets about the malleability of math skills. Overall, this research will advance knowledge by enhancing the mathematical engagement of families in the home environment to improve the mathematical knowledge of young children, and by examining the benefits of resources for parents to help incorporate math talk and gestures into their play and routine activities with their children. This project is supported by NSF’s EDU Core Research (ECR) program. The ECR program emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that generates foundational knowledge in the field. Investments are made in critical areas that are essential, broad, and enduring: STEM learning and STEM learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

在早期数学知识中拥有强大的基础对于儿童后来的数学成就和在STEM领域的前进至关重要。促进早期数学发展的一种背景是家庭环境。非正式的活动以及与成年人的互动可以通过家庭向年幼的孩子提供数学的交流为孩子提供广泛的数学信息。此外，许多因素会影响儿童早期与数学相关的经历。例如，父母的心态并相信儿童发展会影响他们与孩子与数学相关的活动的频率。该项目的目的是研究以父母为中心的数学相关的沟通培训的好处，以提高儿童的数学技能。这项研究的重点是来自低收入背景的家庭，因为来自高收入家庭的儿童始终在数学领域的低收入家庭中的同龄人的表现，即使到学龄前也是如此。家庭培训将通过增强家庭在日常工作中使用数学相关的演讲和手势并与孩子一起玩的手势来建立家庭培训。研究结果将提供有关在家中与数学相关的沟通是否可以促进学习的洞察力，并将产生低成本工具，以使幼儿早期数学发展受益。拟议的研究将研究与来自潜水员背景的低收入家庭的数学相关沟通培训的好处（n = 300）。中心目的是检查：1）在3个月内，重点关注数学交流的好处（有或没有手势）的家庭培训是否会促进父母及其学龄前儿童使用的数学谈话和手势； 2）家庭培训是否可以提高学龄前儿童的数学技能，以及这些改进是否在3个月后稳定； 3）数学沟通培训的影响是否不同于父母对数学技能的不同心态的家庭。在这项研究中，家庭将获得三个培训之一，这些培训专注于促进与数学相关的谈话和手势，仅与数学相关的谈话或在比赛中进行演讲。前两个培训将通过视频和材料为家庭提供工具和信息，以将数学通信编码与孩子进行游戏和日常活动。在三个月的干预期间，将在亲子互动期间检查数学谈话和手势使用的变化。儿童的早期数学技能也将在培训之前，三个月的干预期和3个月延迟测试后进行评估。此外，将采用一种个体差异方法来确定培训的有效性是否与对数学技能延展性的各种思维方式的父母（和父母的子女）有所不同。总体而言，这项研究将通过加强家庭环境中家庭的数学参与来提高知识，以改善幼儿的数学知识，并通过研究父母的利益，以帮助将数学谈话和手势纳入与孩子的游戏和例行活动。该项目得到了NSF的EDU核心研究（ECR）计划的支持。 ECR计划强调了基本的STEM教育研究，该研究在该领域产生了基础知识。投资是在重要，广泛和结束的关键领域进行的：STEM学习和STEM学习环境，扩大参与STEM和STEM劳动力发展。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛影响的评估来通过评估来获得的支持。