Bilateral Austria: three hundred-and-twenty-eight and 328: cross-format number integration and its relationship to mathematics performance

Numeracy is the Cinderella of literacy, much less researched but at least as important for employment and life success as literacy. This research project will investigate the development of a fundamental principle of numeracy, the link between number words and number symbols, with the aim to identify potential risk factors for low numeracy.

Children entering primary school need to shift from using mainly spoken numbers words (e.g., 'twenty-three') to being able to write down the correct multi-digit Arabic strings (e.g., '23') upon hearing spoken number words. This is called number word transcoding and fundamental for mathematical development.

This project will investigate three aspects of transcoding between number words and Arabic digits.

First, we will analyse the mapping between single Arabic digits (e.g., '8') and the corresponding number words (e.g., 'eight'), because the single Arabic digits are the basic building blocks for all Arabic multi-digit strings (e.g. 28732). Most children in primary school already know the single Arabic digits. We propose that the efficiency with which children map between digits and number words is still increasing in primary school. In this project we will test this by measuring the efficiency of the mapping in children of different ages. We will also measure children's mathematical ability to see whether the efficiency of the mapping is related to their mathematical ability.

Secondly, this project will investigate multi-digit number transcoding. This is important because most of the numbers children are dealing with in primary school are multi-digit numbers (e.g., 2015) and instructions are often given verbally (e.g., 'thirty-two'). We will follow children from Year 1 to Year 3 and measure their ability to transcode multi-digit numbers as well as other number skills every year. We will also test their maths performance. This study will enable us to decide whether a child's ability to transcode multi-digits accurately in Year 1 predicts how their mathematical ability will develop over the next few years better than other measures of numerical skills.

Thirdly, number words depend on the language a person speaks. Non-native children entering primary school will be much less familiar with native number words and their mapping to the Arabic digits. Given the multilingual context of many children in primary school in the UK and across Europe, it is important to find out whether and if so, how, language factors influence the association between spoken number words and Arabic digits. We will investigate the influence of language on number transcoding by comparing monolingual children from two language backgrounds: English and German.

In addition to increasing our knowledge about the process of number transcoding, this research project will lead to new ways of assessing children's number skills and will in the long run help native and non-native children who struggle with maths.

Numeracy is at least as important as literacy for life success, yet much less is known about risk factors for low numeracy. A better understanding of early risk factors for mathematical difficulties is crucial for the development of theoretically motivated, effective interventions. Our study will investigate the development of a fundamental principle of numeracy, the link between number words and number symbols, with the aim to identify potential risk factors for low numeracy.

Who will benefit from this research?
Our findings will be of theoretical and practical relevance to teachers and education professionals, with the ultimate beneficiaries being children learning maths. The Research Fellow, the Project Coordinator and the summer bursary students will directly benefit from this research project. In the long run, outcomes of our research also have the potential to influence schools, education policy, businesses and industry, and the general public.

How will they benefit from the research?
This project will deliver and train two highly skilled researchers. During the course of the project the Research Fellow and the Project Coordinator will be provided with diverse opportunities to develop their professional and academic skills. Summer bursary students will also directly benefit by gaining experience working in a research lab, in schools and with children. In addition, they will receive training in a neurophysiological research method (EEG).
Schools, teachers and educational professionals might benefit from this research, because it will identify critical aspects of maths teaching, the most promising candidates for effective numeracy interventions and inform novel ways of assessing children's numeracy skills. From the start of the project we will have an advisory group consisting of potential beneficiaries such as teachers, education policy advisors and parents. They will have input into the design and execution of our research and advise on user engagement and dissemination.
Our research also has the potential to contribute towards evidence-based policy making. We anticipate to be able to inform educational practice with evidence-based methods regarding maths instruction to maximize children's opportunities for maths learning. The impact objectives are to build awareness of the project amongst the potential beneficiaries, to influence educational practice and to increase the effectiveness of classroom-based instruction.
In the long run, results from this research might enhance quality of life, health & well-being. Poor numeracy is related to higher rates of unemployment, lower salary, depression and poorer health (OECD, 2012; KPMG, 2008; Carpentieri et al., 2009). If the proposed project is successful in identifying early risk factors for low numeracy, then it will inform interventions which will increase levels of numeracy and prepare people better for the data-driven demands of the modern workplace.
Businesses and industry might also benefit from outcomes of our research, because there will be a more numerate workforce.
Finally, our project will contribute to increasing public awareness and understanding of science through a range of activities (for more details see pathways to Impact).
We aim to engage beneficiaries via social media and newsletters and will issue press releases from the press offices of York and Graz to coincide with conference presentations and journal publications. We will deliver training days and workshops for schools to share findings and provide guidance on implementing evidence-based approaches to teaching. We will seek to engage the next generation of teachers by targeting trainee teachers who are completing Post-Graduate Certificate in Education degrees. By providing guidance to trainee teachers regarding the value of explicitly teaching the mapping between number words and Arabic digits, we hope to ensure that the impact of the research extends the lifetime of the project.