The relation between science achievement and general cognitive abilities in large-scale assessments

The Impact of Achievements in Mathematics on Cognitive Ability in Primary School

Cognitive skills predict academic performance, so schools that try to improve academic performance might also improve cognitive skills. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of achievements in mathematics on cognitive ability in primary school. Methods: Participants: 100 girls and 102 boys aged 9–10 years (the fourth grade) were selected from three schools. A diagnostic test of cognitive abilities (DTCA) was created by the authors of the article for the assessment of primary school students’ cognitive abilities. The diagnostic cognitive ability test was based on Reuven Feuerstein’s theory of dynamic cognitive modality assessment, the problem-solving model, and followed the mathematics curriculum for grade 4. The tasks of the test were distributed according to the cognitive function: systematic exploration, spatial orientation, sequencing, image recognition, recognizing and understanding relationships, collecting and processing information, algorithm development, data management (classification), and construction of combinations. Achievements in mathematics: they were collected systematically using short- and medium-term mathematics tests, and the levels of achaievement were defined of grade 4 primary school students to assess individual learner performance, anticipate their learning strengths and weaknesses, and shape their subsequent learning process. Results: With regard to the relationships between cognitive functions and achievement level, Spearman’s correlation analysis revealed the relationships between the following cognitive functions: systematic exploration and spatial orientation (Spearman q = 0.276, p = 0.022), systematic exploration and designing an algorithm development (Spearman q = 0.351, p = 0.003), spatial orientation and data management (Spearman q = 0.274, p = 0.023), sequencing and combination construction (Spearman q = 0.275, p = 0.022), and sequencing and recognizing and understanding relationships (Spearman q = 0.243, p = 0.044). Conclusions: (1) The internal validity of the diagnostic test of cognitive abilities was supported by significant correlations between cognitive functions and mathematics achievement. This suggests that this methodology of the diagnostic cognitive ability test can be used to assess the cognitive abilities of primary school students. (2) The diagnostic test of cognitive abilities showed that the majority of primary school students reached higher levels of achievement in a systematic inquiry (systematic, non-impulsive, planned behavior when collecting data or checking information). A difference was observed in the ability of students to navigate in space and follow directions for primary school students at a satisfactory or higher level. Primary school students’ performance in identifying the rule for the sequencing of elements, finding missing elements, and extending the sequences was at the basic and advanced levels. (3) The results of the study showed the reciprocal correlation between achievements in mathematics and cognitive function of primary school students. The two phases that caused difficulties for students were revealed: understanding the problem and carrying out the plan phase.

Flexibility to Change the Solution: An Indicator of Problem Solving That Predicted 9th Grade Students’ Academic Achievement during Distance Learning, in Parallel to Reasoning Abilities and Parental Education

The relation between academic achievement and various measurements of cognitive abilities, problem-solving skills and self-managed learning has been established in the research before the COVID-19 pandemic and distance learning. The aim of the current research was to analyze the extent to which these aspects predicted the educational achievement of 9th grade students (mean age 15.4 years) during distance learning, when students had to do relatively more tasks independently, organize their daily learning and deal with problems on their own. Relations between self-assessed problem-solving skills, self-management skills, tests of reasoning abilities and the results of diagnostic tests in Mathematics and Latvian were analyzed for n = 256 and n = 244 students, respectively. The results show that: (1) diagnostic test results in Mathematics are best predicted by the parental education level, fluid nonverbal reasoning and verbal reasoning; (2) the best predictors for the results in the diagnostic test in Latvian are parental education, flexibility to change the solution, fluid nonverbal reasoning and verbal reasoning; (3) self-management cannot significantly predict the results of either of the two tests, although it correlates to the results of the tests in both Mathematics and Latvian; (4) only one of the aspects of problem-solving, flexibility to change the solution, can significantly predict results in diagnostic tests. The results confirm the significance of cognitive abilities as an important predictor of academic achievement, as well as the role of parents’ education level. The results also suggest that the flexibility to change the solution, an aspect of problem-solving, might play a role in students’ success in academic tests.