Applying an Individual Word-Problem Intervention to a Small-Group Setting: A Pilot Study’s Evidence of Improved Word-Problem Performance for Students Experiencing Mathematics Difficulty
Sarah R. Powell, Katherine A. Berry, Anasazi N. Acunto, Anna‐Mária Fall, Greg Roberts
Abstract
The purpose of this pilot study was to determine whether positive results from a word-problem intervention implemented one-to-one contributed to similar outcomes when implemented in small groups of three to four students. Third-grade students experiencing mathematics difficulty ( N = 76) were randomly assigned to word-problem intervention ( n = 56) or business-as-usual comparison ( n = 20). Intervention occurred for 13 weeks, 3 times per week, 30 min per session. Multilevel models revealed the intervention condition significantly outperformed the BaU on a proximal word-problem outcome, corroborating results from our prior individual intervention. When comparing student performance in the individual versus small-group intervention, findings suggest students received added benefit from the individual intervention. The word-problem intervention successfully translated to a small-group setting, which holds important implications for educators working with students in supplemental, targeted, or Tier 2 mathematics intervention settings.