Maths instruction in schools
The development of basic number skills is important for
everyday living. Research suggests that children with Down
syndrome find learning number skills more difficult than
learning to read. Little is understood about why this might be
the case and the extent to which teaching methodologies might
influence progress. Recent pilot work has suggested that a
structured approach, accompanied with materials that
physically represent mathematical and number concepts may
accelerate children’s progress.
Research
This study
will investigate the effectiveness of this approach to number
teaching through a randomised controlled trial involving
50 children with Down syndrome aged 5-11 years attending mainstream schools
across 2 locations in the UK.
The
children’s Learning Support Assistants will be trained to
deliver the maths programme in an individual session each day over a whole school year. The children will be randomly
assigned to one of two groups. One group will receive the
training programme in the first year of the project and the
other group will receive the programme during the second year.
This ‘waiting list’ design, with random assignment to group,
is essential to give unambiguous evidence of the effectiveness
of the programme. All children in the programme will
eventually receive the programme and they will all receive
regular assessment of number, reading, language and related
skills throughout both years to check on their progress.
Investigators
Partners and advisors
Location
This is a multi-centre study taking place at:
Study results will be published in peer-reviewed scientific publications. Practice
implications will be published in periodicals for families and professionals, including
Down Syndrome Research and Practice
and incorporated into freely available Down Syndrome Topics
advice and information summaries and Down Syndrome Issues
and Information books. Open Access articles and summaries will be provided
for reproduction in the newsletters and journals of associations, support groups
and professional societies. The study results will also be shared
through the Trust's training courses and its contributions to
conferences in the UK and worldwide.
Impact
- Evaluation of classroom maths instruction programme
designed for children with Down syndrome
- Improved understanding of number learning for children
with Down syndrome
- Practical guidance for teaching number skills and
mathematics to children with Down syndrome