LaMa - Language and Mathematics

Support

• Gemeinnützige Hertie-Stiftung (Hertie-Stiftung; Nonprofit Foundation; doctoral scholarship)

Responsible

•  Katrin Bochnik (Doctoral Training Programme of the Munich Center of the Learning Sciences, MCLS)
•  Stefan Ufer

Project description

Learners with a migration background often experience educational disadvantages in German schools. Among other variables, the attempts to explain this relationship refer to low German language proficiency, since German is the language of instruction. On the one hand, achievement differences between learners with German family language and learners with non-German family language have been reported for mathematics as a core subject already at the beginning of elementary school (Heinze, Herwartz-Emden & Reiss, 2007). On the other hand, Kempert, Saalbach and Hardy (2011) also report a positive impact of bilingualism on mathematics skills among Turkish-German third grade students for certain word problems. Summarizing, research indicates that mathematics skills must be studied in a differentiated way. Differences based on the language proficiency level are particularly pronounced for tasks which require understanding of mathematics concepts, and are smaller for basic arithmetic skills. However, it often remains still unclear to what extent these reported achievement differences can be explained by language problems regarding test comprehension or by less possibilities to use opportunities to learn in the German-speaking classroom (e.g. Abedi et al., 2006).

The project assumes that instructional language proficiency is a central mediator for the acquisition of mathematics skills. A longitudinal study at the beginning and the end of Grade 3 (N = 400) will first analyze which areas of mathematical competence are most sensitive to proficiency differences in the language of instruction. Moreover, indicators to measure opportunities to learn are used to gain insight into the role of participation in classroom discourse as a further impact variable.

Information for participating schools

The participating schools and parents or legal guardians of participating students can find here following information about the data collection. To open the data, please use the password from the parent information letter.

LaMa Flyer

LaMa exemplary tasks mathematics

Conference articles and Conference contributions

• Bochnik, K., Ufer, S. (2013). Der Einfluss einer nicht-deutschen Familiensprache auf verschiedene Facetten mathematischer Kompetenz in der Grundschule. Beiträge zum Mathematikunterricht 2013.
• Bochnik, K., Ufer, S. (2013). A Questionnaire to Survey Opportunities to Learn in Primary School Mathematics Classrooms. 37th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. Kiel.
• Bochnik, K., Ufer, S. (2014). Konzeptuelles Verständnis und schematisierbare Fertigkeiten von Drittklässlern mit (nicht-)deutscher Familiensprache. Beiträge zum Mathematikunterricht 2014.
• Bochnik, K., Ufer, S. (submitted). The Impact of a non-German Family Language on four Facets of Mathematical Competence. 38th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. Vancouver.