TY - JOUR
T1 - Validating the Research-Based Early Math Assessment (REMA) among rural children in Southwest United States
AU - Alkhadim, Ghadah S.
AU - Cimetta, Adriana D.
AU - Marx, Ronald W.
AU - Cutshaw, Christina A.
AU - Yaden, David B.
N1 - Funding Information:
This project was supported by the Arizona Early Childhood Development and Health Board—First Things First . Points of view or opinions contained in the document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the Arizona Early Childhood Development and Health Board—First Things First.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2021/3
Y1 - 2021/3
N2 - Children attending rural schools start kindergarten with lower mathematics achievement than their peers in urban schools and the gap increases during the later academic years. A valid theory and research-based measure is needed to identify the weakness of kindergarteners attending rural schools, so early interventions in mathematics can be designed. The purposes of this study are to: (1) validate a Research-Based Early Math Assessment (REMA) among 249 first-time kindergarteners attending rural schools using the Rasch model (Rasch, 1980); and (2) use the Rasch estimated ability scores to investigate differences in rural kindergarteners’ performance on the REMA across several subgroups (gender, ethnicity, poverty, guardian's education, preschool attendance, and age). Findings showed that the REMA items fit within the mathematics competence of kindergarteners attending rural schools. Further, findings indicated that ethnicity, poverty, guardian's education, preschool attendance, and age are factors affecting rural kindergarteners’ ability to perform on the REMA.
AB - Children attending rural schools start kindergarten with lower mathematics achievement than their peers in urban schools and the gap increases during the later academic years. A valid theory and research-based measure is needed to identify the weakness of kindergarteners attending rural schools, so early interventions in mathematics can be designed. The purposes of this study are to: (1) validate a Research-Based Early Math Assessment (REMA) among 249 first-time kindergarteners attending rural schools using the Rasch model (Rasch, 1980); and (2) use the Rasch estimated ability scores to investigate differences in rural kindergarteners’ performance on the REMA across several subgroups (gender, ethnicity, poverty, guardian's education, preschool attendance, and age). Findings showed that the REMA items fit within the mathematics competence of kindergarteners attending rural schools. Further, findings indicated that ethnicity, poverty, guardian's education, preschool attendance, and age are factors affecting rural kindergarteners’ ability to perform on the REMA.
KW - Rasch analysis
KW - Research-based early math assessment
KW - Rural schools
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U2 - 10.1016/j.stueduc.2020.100944
DO - 10.1016/j.stueduc.2020.100944
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85096832044
VL - 68
JO - Studies in Educational Evaluation
JF - Studies in Educational Evaluation
SN - 0191-491X
M1 - 100944
ER -