Page 13 - Children’s mathematical development and learning needs in perspective of teachers’ use of dynamic math interviews

Successful mathematical development is an important factor for daily functioning, self-reliance, and later career opportunities (Tout & Gal, 2015). In the first years of elementary school, children are expected to develop an understanding of numbers, counting, and basic arithmetic skills: the necessities for later mathematical development (Geary, 2004; Geary & Hoard, 2005). Half-way through elementary school, the complexity of mathematical problems increases and the focus of mathematics education shifts to advanced mathematics (e.g., fractions, percentages).
Large individual differences characterize children’s mathematical development and have been found to be predicted by both general cognitive factors (e.g., reasoning, executive functioning, processing speed) and domain-specific skills (e.g., automatization of addition and subtraction up to 20) as well as beliefs and emotions (Bailey et al., 2014; Chinn, 2012; Cragg et al., 2017; Fuchs et al., 2016). Having an informed overview of children’s math learning needs is thus crucial.
Dynamic math interviewing is an assessment approach involving an interactive, process-oriented, teacher-child dialogue and can provide insight into children's math learning needs (Allsopp et al., 2008). The aim of dynamic math interviewing is to identify the individual math learning needs of children, suitable forms of instruction, and the extent and type of support that is needed (Ginsburg, 1997, 2009; Van Luit, 2019; Wright et al., 2006). The conduct of dynamic math interviews requires specific knowledge and skills. A teacher professional development program that promotes the development of the necessary competencies could help teachers how to conduct such interviews (Heck et al., 2019).
Despite the widespread availability of research addressing the impact of child and teacher factors on mathematics achievement, relatively few studies have combined child and teacher factors to predict children’s mathematical development. With regard to mathematical development, arithmetic fluency and mathematical problem-solving are generally not distinguished. And it has yet to be demonstrated that dynamic math interviewing is truly effective for the identification of math learning needs and improvement of mathematical teaching as a result. The aim of the present research was therefore to unravel the
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General introduction
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