title: Adolescents' functional numeracy is predicted by their school entry number system knowledge.
abstract: One in five adults in the United States is functionally innumerate; they do not possess the mathematical competencies needed for many modern jobs. We administered functional numeracy measures used in studies of young adults' employability and wages to 180 thirteen-year-olds. The adolescents began the study in kindergarten and participated in multiple assessments of intelligence, working memory, mathematical cognition, achievement, and in-class attentive behavior. Their number system knowledge at the beginning of first grade was defined by measures that assessed knowledge of the systematic relations among Arabic numerals and skill at using this knowledge to solve arithmetic problems. Early number system knowledge predicted functional numeracy more than six years later (ß = 0.195, p = .0014) controlling for intelligence, working memory, in-class attentive behavior, mathematical achievement, demographic and other factors, but skill at using counting procedures to solve arithmetic problems did not. In all, we identified specific beginning of schooling numerical knowledge that contributes to individual differences in adolescents' functional numeracy and demonstrated that performance on mathematical achievement tests underestimates the importance of this early knowledge.
authors: Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA. GearyD@Missouri.edu
authors: David C
authors: DC
authors: Geary
authors: Mary K
authors: MK
authors: Hoard
authors: Lara
authors: L
authors: Nugent
authors: Drew H
authors: DH
authors: Bailey
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007360:Intelligence; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D016743:Mental Competency
references: J Learn Disabil. 2013 Mar-Apr;46(2):166-81
references: 21685346
references: J Psychoeduc Assess. 2009 Jun;27(3):265-279
references: 20161145
references: Trends Cogn Sci. 2004 Jul;8(7):307-14
references: 15242690
references: J Learn Disabil. 2012 Jul-Aug;45(4):291-307
references: 21252374
references: Cognition. 2011 Nov;121(2):256-61
references: 21855058
references: Psychol Sci. 2012 Jul 1;23(7):691-7
references: 22700332
references: Dev Psychol. 2007 Nov;43(6):1428-1446
references: 18020822
references: J Exp Child Psychol. 2009 Aug;103(4):469-79
references: 19285682
references: Child Dev. 2004 Mar-Apr;75(2):428-44
references: 15056197
references: J Educ Psychol. 2012 Feb;104(1):206-223
references: 27158154
references: Dev Psychol. 2010 Nov;46(6):1731-46
references: 20822213
references: Cognition. 1992 Aug;44(1-2):43-74
references: 1511586
references: Child Dev. 2011 Jul-Aug;82(4):1224-37
references: 21679173
references: J Exp Child Psychol. 2012 Nov;113(3):447-55
references: 22832199
references: J Exp Child Psychol. 2003 Dec;86(4):277-302
references: 14623213
references: Dev Psychol. 2008 Sep;44(5):1457-65
references: 18793076
references: Dev Psychol. 2011 Nov;47(6):1539-52
references: 21942667
references: Int J Educ Psychol Assess. 2012 Apr;10(1):51-70
references: 26504617
references: Dev Psychol. 2006 Jan;42(1):189-201
references: 16420128
references: Child Dev. 2007 Jul-Aug;78(4):1343-59
references: 17650142
references: Child Dev. 2010 Nov-Dec;81(6):1753-67
references: 21077862
references: Dev Psychol. 2009 May;45(3):850-67
references: 19413436
references: Cognition. 2011 Jan;118(1):32-44
references: 20970782
references: J Exp Child Psychol. 1990 Jun;49(3):363-83
references: 2348157