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

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.

在早期数学知识方面拥有坚实的基础，对于孩子后来的数学成就和在STEM领域的进步至关重要。促进早期数学发展的一个背景是家庭环境。与成年人的非正式活动和互动可以通过家庭向其年幼子女提供的关于数学的交流为儿童提供广泛的数学信息。此外，许多因素可能会影响孩子在家中早期的数学相关体验。例如，父母对孩子发展的心态和信念会影响他们与孩子参与数学相关活动的频率。该项目的目标是考察以家长为中心的与数学相关的沟通培训对提高孩子数学技能的好处。这项研究的重点是来自低收入家庭的家庭，因为来自高收入家庭的孩子在数学方面的表现一直优于来自低收入家庭的同龄人，甚至在学龄前就是如此。家庭培训将加强家庭在日常生活和与孩子玩耍时使用的与数学相关的谈话和手势，从而增强家庭的优势。这项研究的结果将为我们提供洞察，了解在家中与数学相关的交流是否以及如何能够促进学习，并将产生低成本的工具，有利于幼儿的早期数学发展。这项拟议的研究将考察与来自不同背景的低收入家庭(n=300)进行的与数学相关的沟通培训的好处。主要目的是考察：1)为期3个月的以数学交流的好处为重点的家庭培训(有手势和没有手势)是否会促进父母和他们的学龄前儿童使用数学谈话和手势；2)家庭培训是否提高了学龄前儿童的数学技能，这些改善在3个月后是否稳定；3)对于父母对数学技能的可塑性有不同看法的家庭，数学交流培训的效果是否不同。在这项研究中，家庭将接受三种培训之一，重点是促进与数学有关的谈话和手势，仅与数学有关的谈话，或在游戏中交谈。前两个培训将通过视频和材料为家庭提供工具和信息，将数学交流融入游戏和与孩子的日常活动中。在为期3个月的干预期间，家长和孩子在数学对话和手势使用方面的变化将在亲子互动中进行检查。孩子们的早期数学技能也将在培训前、干预3个月后和延迟3个月的后测中进行评估。此外，将采取个体差异的方法来确定对于对数学技能的可塑性持有不同心态的父母(和父母的孩子)，培训的效果是否不同。总体而言，这项研究将通过加强家庭在家庭环境中的数学参与来提高幼儿的数学知识，并通过审查资源的好处来帮助父母将数学谈话和手势纳入他们与孩子的游戏和日常活动中，从而促进知识的发展。该项目得到了NSF的EDU核心研究(ECR)计划的支持。ECR计划强调基础STEM教育研究，以产生该领域的基础知识。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。