Mothers' Interactions with Children Doing Mathematics

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Experts continue to decry the poor performance of American children on standardized mathematics tests. Hundreds of studies have investigated mathematics learning in the formal setting of the school, including analyses of teacher-student interactions and best methods for teachers to use in instruction. In contrast, informal mathematics learning in the home has received little research attention, and direct analyses of parent-child interactions involving math problems have seldom been attempted. The primary purpose of the proposed research is to study mothers as they help their 5th and 7th grade children with math problems. The researchers developed a standardized mathematics task that can be administered in the home using a laptop computer. Mother-child interactions will be videotaped and coded. The approach is based on cognitive social learning theory and Vygotsky's premise that the child's intellectual development is heavily rooted in the child's social environment, or what Rogoff calls an apprenticeship in thinking.