Date of Conferral

2019

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Andrea Wilson

Abstract

Researchers have shown a correlation between students’ math fact fluency and their achievement in higher-level math. The problem investigated by this study was that 59% of students in intermediate elementary grades at the local school were not proficient in math. Guided by Miller’s information processing theory, the purpose of this quantitative, causal-comparative study was to examine the influence of the Reflex Math Fact Fluency Program on 2nd graders’ math achievement scores (as a whole group and by gender) after 1 school year of program use. Archival data was purposefully sampled for 98 2nd grade students (n = 50 boys; n = 48 girls) who were continuously enrolled for the entire 2018-19 school year and completed both the Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 Star Math Assessments prior to and following exposure to the Reflex Math Fact Fluency Program. Results of a repeated measures t test showed students’ scores after using the program for 1 school year were significantly higher than the same students’ scores before the program. Additionally, a mixed-design ANOVA revealed a significant interaction effect such that girls’ scores before the program were higher than the boys’ scores but were lower than the boys’ scores after the program. Findings suggest that the Reflex Math Fact Fluency Program can be a valuable tool for elementary level students, especially boys, who are learning basic math skills. Implications for positive social change include providing the school’s stakeholders with a policy recommendation that may influence students’ access to additional instructional opportunities in math which could, in turn, lead to improved student achievement in math over time.

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