Investigating literacy-dependent performance in primary Mathematics : a written test-based approach

Abstract

Language is very important in education where teaching and learning mostly occur through verbal interactions. In the absence of a person, language takes the form of writing as in the case of tests and other forms of written assessment. One problem many pupils face during written exams is the inability to understand the question presented and to communicate what they know in writing – thus not showing their full potential. Very often this results in poor performance and low marks due to poor command of literacy skills rather than from a lack of knowledge. This study aims to investigate whether language use influences performance in mainstream mathematics and explore which approach is best in the Maltese testing scenario. In doing so, the researcher asked around 300 pupils to take three mathematics tests each – one in English, one in Maltese with codeswitching and one with minimal use of either Maltese or English. Findings suggest that while heavy language use is generally not necessary, the Maltese language approach, coupled with code-switching for technical words, proved most successful for most of the topics presented. It was found that while girls are not significantly affected by the language used, boys are.