Using manipulatives to teach mathematics-related analysis skills in a high school chemistry course

Research question. How might the use of manipulatives help students improve the mathematics skills necessary to analyze data in a high school chemistry class?;(1) How does working in groups with manipulatives affect student achievement in learning mathematics skills in a chemistry class? (2) How does working with manipulatives in groups affect student attitudes toward learning the mathematics skills used to analyze data in a chemistry class? (3) How does working with manipulatives in groups affect student engagement in the process of learning mathematical skills in a chemistry class?;Research activities. This research explores the use of card-based manipulatives to teach students mathematics-related analysis skills in a high school chemistry course. Context. The research took place in a suburban high school chemistry class of 30 students. Two students were classified as English Learners at the beginning of the study. One of the two was reclassified as Fluent English Proficient during the fall semester. In addition, two students had 504 plans and accommodations. Methods and data. The intervention took place over a period of approximately five weeks, and consisted of three mathematics-related analysis tasks: drawing Lewis dot diagrams and determining the chemical formulas of covalent compounds, mole-mass conversions, and percent composition calculations. Students were taught using direct instruction and guided and independent practice on one day, and assessed using a short quiz on the following day. Following the quiz, the students performed the same tasks using card-based manipulatives, and were assessed with a similar quiz the next day. The results of the quizzes were compared. Pre-intervention attitude data were collected using a survey. Post-intervention attitude data were collected using a survey of all students, and interviews of three focus students. Observational data was collected using journaling after the activities. Results. Improvement in student achievement was observed following the use of manipulatives in drawing Lewis dot diagrams and performing percent composition calculations. Student attitudes toward manipulative activities and group work declined, however. Slightly less than half of the students believed that the manipulatives helped. During activities, student engagement was high for the Lewis dot diagram activity, but students who understood formulas from the lectures preferred not using the cards for the mass-mole and percent composition activities.;Grade Level: 10-12;Data Collection Methods: Student Work, Survey---Attitude, Interviews, Observation---Teacher Research Journal;Curriculum Areas: Science - Chemistry;Instructional Approaches: Math---Manipulatives, Student Engagement, Cooperative Learning...