A Preliminary Study On The Development Of Supportive Class Environmental Assessment Tools For Children’s Mathematics Learning

Mathematics learning is an important part of the overall development of children.The study shows that the class mathematics learning environment is an important influence factor for children’s mathematics learning.At present,the evaluation tools and basic research on the supportive class environment for children’s mathematics learning are still very weak in China.Therefore,it has important value to develop a children’s mathematics learning support class environment assessment tools in kindergartens in China.This study aims to combine the theory and practice,analysising the contents of Chinese Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale(CECERE)(Third,Trial),exploring the relevant assessment index to children’s mathematics learning from CECERS,developingt children’s mathematics learning supportive classroom environment assessment scale preliminarily,and testing it’s reliability and validity.Finally,exploring theory and setting the dimension on children’s mathematics learning support environment,in order to provide suggestions gor further scale.This study ueses the method of literature research,questionnaire,content analysis and statistical analysis.In order to compiling the index of Chindren Mathematics Learning Support Class Environmental Assessment Scale(The following abbreviated Mathematical Environment Scale),this study establishing scale index pool by means of content analysis and regression analysis,then invited 84 samples from the kindergarten principal in Z Province H city,the preschool educational graduate students and kindergarten teachers to screen out indicators index to children’s mathematics learning by questionnaires.After that,the study use the cluster analysis to construct the scale’s hierarchical dimension,and use the method of text analysis and questionnaire investigation to construct the scale’s content dimension;then tests the scale’s reliability and validity by internal consistency,concurrent validity,criterion related validity;finally comparing the predictive validity of the Mathematical Environment Scale with CECERS by correlation analysis and regression analysis.This study has following conclusions:1.The Mathematical Environment Scale contains 56 supportive class environmental index related to math learning.2.The Mathematical Environment Scale has four rank levels and five content dimension:mathematical operation materials,teachers’ mathematics literacy,learning objectives and contents,teachers’ guidance and activity organization and management.3.The Mathematical Environ.ment Scale has acceptable internal consistency reliability and good simultaneous reliability,the scale’s predictive validity for early childhood mathematics is higher than CECERS.Finally,this study discusses the above results in detail,analyzes it’s reasons,and constructs the assessment elements of children mathematics learning class environment,then gives the dimensions and indicators on revision of The Mathematical Environmen.t Scale.The researcher suggest that it need to distinguish the "core factors" and "external factors" of children’s mathematics learning in the future scale."Core factorst" include learning conditions and teaching and interaction.The learning conditions can be assessed from mathematical operating materials and mathematical space;The teaching and interaction assessed from the teaching and interaction focusing on the teaching interaction,on children’s conceptual understanding,on the teaching interaction of children’s mathematical thinking,on the teaching interaction of children’s problem-solving ability,and on the children’s mathematics learning quality."external factors" include the teachers’mathematical accomplishment and the organization and management of the activities.The teachers’ mathematical accomplishment can be assessed from the concept of mathematics education,the structure of teachers’ mathematics knowledge and the ability of teachers’mathematics;The organization and management of the activities can be assessed from the organization of mathematical activities,the management of mathematical activities and the management of the relationship between teachers and children.In view of the limitations of this research,we expect to get more scientific,reasonable and sufficient samples in futre research.Based on the class observation,we should make further efforts on reliability and validity of the mathematical environment scale,improving the assessment dimension and index of the children’s mathematics learning supportive class environment,and analysing more scientifically and systematically.