A study on the Influence of language

competency in doing math problems

among upper primary students

Deena Binson
B.Ed Mathematics
Mount Carmel College of Teacher Education for Women

ABSTRACT
Developing the language of mathematics is an essential aspect of
teaching mathematics to young children. As the students
understand the language of mathematics , their confidence ,
attitude and scores , all began to improve. A major problem faced
by students nowadays is the inability to recognize and recall math
terms. The aim of the study is to check the vocabulary knowledge
of the students.
 .

INTRODUCTION
Mathematics is a language that is written using numbers and
symbols that can often confuse those who do not understand
its detail and intracities.. The study of mathematics can satisfy
a wide range of interests and abilities. Mathematics is also a
language which has a distinctive vocabulary. To better
understand math one cannot survive on numbers alone. There
has to be meaning and reason that goes along with the
calculations and formulas. Mathematical vocabulary plays an
integral role in the understanding and learning of
mathematics. To be fluent in the mathematical language one
must be able to use and understand vocabulary. However only
a few consider this. Even teachers are not aware of this aspect.

Student’s mathematical vocabulary learning is a very

important part of their language development and ultimately
mathematical proficiency. It is very important in math
learning especially in problem solving. Although students
may excel in computation, their ability to apply math skills
will be hindered if they do not understand the vocabulary used
in instructions and word problems. A major problem is the
inability of students to recognize and recall math terms. This
is important because when it is time to test, many students
miss problems not because they do not know how to do the
work, but rather they do not understand what it is they are
supposed to do.

Developing the language of mathematics is an essential aspect

of teaching mathematics to young children. This process
continues throughout an individual’s mathematics education.
Students need a thorough understanding of vocabulary
because the words are labels for important concepts. Since
many students do not posses a good math vocabulary they
have difficulty in reading and understanding mathematical
content. Many terms have meanings in the realm of
mathematics that differ from their meanings in everyday
usage. Both mastery of vocabulary and problem solving
ability are interrelated and important for a mathematics
student. Lack of math vocabulary hinders the student’s
understanding of the curriculum. It plays an important role in
a student’s ability tounderstand daily lessons, complete
homework discussideas in groups, appear and be successful in
scholastic performance etc. Thus teaching vocabulary in the
mathematics content is a critical element of effective
instruction and developing problem solving ability.

METHODOLOGY

Methodology used for this study was the experimental

method.40 students of class V E of Mount Carmel School,
Kanjikuzhy were selected and a test of 10 questions
containing word problems in division were given and asked to
solve it. After that the same questions in the numerical form
were given and asked to solve those questions also.

TOOLS USED

The tools used for the study were the question papers
containing word problems and the same in numerical forms.

SAMPLE

40 students of class V E of Mount Carmel School,

Kanjikuzhy were taken as the sample.
 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
The major aim of the study was to check the vocabulary
knowledge of the students. For this two tests were conducted.
One test consisted of word problems of subtraction with
different vocabularies. Words such as have left, how many
more, less than, left over etc were used instead of ‘subtract’.
And in the second test direct numerical problems with same
values were given. To compare the scores Mean and Standard
deviations were calculated.

Mean and standard deviation of the test scores in word

problems and numerical problems are given below:
Number of Mean Standard
students Deviation

Word 40 3.825 2.8363

Problem
Numerical 40 8.2 1.9199
Problem

9
8
7
6
5
Word Problem
4
Numerical Problem
3
2
1
0
Mean Standard Deviation
 The maximum score of the both tests were 10. The mean
scores obtained for wordproblems and numerical problems
were 3.9 and 8.9 respectively. This shows that theperformance
in the numerical problems is high when compared with the
performance ofword problems.

The objective was to compare the scores of word

problems and numerical problems ofthe population. The data
was analyzed using t-test.For this consider the hypothesis that
“there is no significant difference between the means of the
test scores of word problems and numerical
problems”.Against the alternative hypothesis “that scores in
wordproblems is less than scores in numerical problems”.

Data and result of test of significance of test scores in word

problems and numerical problems:
Mean S.D. N t-value Level of
Significance
Word 3.825 2.8363 40
Problems
8.07 p>0.05
Numerical 8.2 1.9199 40
Problems
*Table value at 0.05 level=1.658
 From the table it can be seen that the calculated t-value is
8.07which is greater than the table valueat 0.05 levels with
degrees of freedom equals 78. It indicates that the mean test
scores of word problems is comparatively lesser than the
scores in numerical problems. Thus the null hypothesis which
states that there is no significant difference in the test scores
of word problems and numerical problems is rejected.
Therefore we accept the alternative hypothesis that the mean
scores in word problems is lesser than the mean score in
numerical problems.
 FINDINGS

The mean values obtained for wordproblems and

numerical problems were 3.825 and 8.2 respectively and the
corresponding standard deviations were 2.8363 and 1.9199.
The interpretation was done on the basis of statistical
inferences. The scores obtained for word problems are lesser
compared to the scores for numerical problems. The analysis
of the scores of students revealed that thevocabulary is
essential to achieve math proficiency with the development of
different mathematical skills and abilities.
 CONCLUSION
Developing the language of mathematics is an essential
aspect of teaching mathematics. Without a sufficient
understanding of words students cannot understand others or
express their own ideas. Vocabulary is important across the
curriculum from language arts and social studies to
mathematics and science. It is intimately connected to both
effective reading and writing skills, and these skills in turn are
necessary for doing well in school.
Majority of the students struggle to formulate the correct
equations that were needed to answer the word problems
given in the test. Vocabulary knowledge in mathematics
appeared to be critical component in answering questions
involving word problems.
On the basis of my project it is clear that vocabulary
plays a major part in the understanding of mathematical
concepts. Children learn mathematics best by using it, and
understanding the language of math gives students the skills
they need to think about, talk about and assimilate new math
concepts as they are introduced.Vocabulary knowledge
provides young learners with a mathematics foundation they
can apply-and build on-in and out of the classroom.
 REFERENCE

 Barwell, Richard .The role of language in mathematics.

 Dr.Chard,David. Vocabulary Strategies for the

Mathematics Classroom.

 Larson, Chad .The Importance of Vocabulary Instruction

in Everyday Mathematics.

 Harmon, J., Hedrick, W., Wood, K. Research on

vocabulary instruction in the Content areas: Implication
for struggling readers.