Measuring early mathematics knowledge via number skills and task types

ABSTRACT

Early number skills are a critical aspect of early mathematics development. However, the constructs that comprise early number skills differ across assessments, and previous studies have proposed various models of early mathematics skills comprised of formal and informal tasks. This study explored the factor structure of a researcher-developed measure of mathematics administered to a large, geographically diverse sample of kindergarten students at risk for mathematics difficulty (n = 580) in a randomized control trial. Consistent with previous research, factors representing early number skills and task types emerged. Importantly though, the best fitting model was one in which both skill types (e.g., number identification, magnitude comparison) and task types (i.e., informal and formal) were modeled. The inclusion of task type as a factor in early mathematics assessment has many potentially important ramifications. Recommendations for attending to task types when assessing early number skills, and implications for instruction and measurement are discussed.

Disclosure statement

The authors declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Ben Clarke, Christian T. Doabler, and Hank Fien are eligible to receive a portion of royalties from the University of Oregon’s distribution and licensing of certain ROOTS-based works. Potential conflicts of interest are managed through the University of Oregon’s Research Compliance Services.

Additional information

Funding

The research reported here was supported by the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, through Grant R324A120304 to the University of Oregon. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the Institute or the U.S. Department of Education.