Karen S. Karp

Shared Story Reading: Teaching Mathematics to Students with Moderate and Severe Disabilities.

fully to promote literacy skills for all students. However, the benefits of shared story reading are not exclusive to literacy instruction and should carry into other disciplines, such as mathematics. Using shared story reading to teach mathematics concepts can play an important role in mathematics instruction for all students. What steps should teachers follow when using children’s literature as a contextual springboard to meaningful mathematics lessons for students with moderate and severe disabilities?

Examining the Relationships among Mathematics Coaches and Specialists, Student Achievement, and Disability Status: A Multilevel Analysis Using National Assessment of Educational Progress Data.

Using restricted-use data from the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress mathematics assessment, the current study examined the relationship between the presence of elementary mathematics coaches and specialists (MCSs) and the mathematics achievement of more than 190,000 fourth-grade students in more than 7,400 schools nationwide. In addition, the study explored how that relationship differed for students with and without identified disabilities, a vital concern with the continued focus of equity in mathematics education. Hierarchical linear modeling, with adjustments for composite covariates and controls as well as sampling weights, was used to examine each research question. Results showed promise for the use of full-time elementary MCSs to support students’ overall and specific content-area mathematics achievement. This positive relationship did not hold true for the use of part-time MCSs, nor was a differential effect found based on students’ disability status.

Effects of Shared Story Reading in Mathematics for Students with Academic Difficulty and Challenging Behaviors.

The primary focus of this study was to examine the effects of Shared Story Reading (SSR) during mathematics instruction on the behavioral outcomes of four elementary students with academic difficulty and challenging behaviors. In addition, the study examined the effect of implementing SSR during mathematics instruction on the teacher’s use of opportunities to respond (OTR). A multiple baseline design across participants was implemented to examine the effects of this curricular approach on increasing the teacher’s OTR, increasing student engagement, and reducing disruptive behavior. Results indicated there was an increase in OTR during the SSR lessons and suggest implementing SSR during mathematics instruction was effective for increasing engagement for students with academic difficulty and challenging behaviors. Results were not definitive regarding the effects of SSR decreasing disruptive behavior.

Fraction Sense: Foundational Understandings:

The intent of this commentary is to identify elements of fraction sense and note how the research studies provided in this special issue, in related but somewhat different ways, validate the importance of such understandings. Proficiency with fractions serves as a prerequisite for student success in higher level mathematics, as well as serving as a gateway to many occupations and varied contexts beyond the mathematics classroom. Fraction sense is developed through instructional opportunities involving fraction equivalence and magnitude, comparing and ordering fractions, using fraction benchmarks, and computational estimation. Such foundations are then extended to operations involving fractions and decimals and applications involving proportional reasoning. These components of fraction sense are all addressed in the studies provided in this issue, with particular consideration devoted to the significant importance of the use of the number line as a central representational tool for conceptually understanding fraction magnitude.