Tackling Complex Math: Five Instructional Practices to Support Middle School Students
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| Title: | Tackling Complex Math: Five Instructional Practices to Support Middle School Students |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Danielle O. Lariviere (ORCID |
| Source: | TEACHING Exceptional Children. 2026 58(4):244-257. |
| Availability: | SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 14 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Descriptive |
| Education Level: | Junior High Schools Middle Schools Secondary Education Elementary Education Grade 6 Intermediate Grades Grade 7 Grade 8 |
| Descriptors: | Middle School Students, Mathematics Instruction, Teaching Methods, Middle School Mathematics, Common Core State Standards, Students with Disabilities, Individualized Education Programs, At Risk Students, Learning Problems, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8, Mathematics Achievement, Difficulty Level |
| DOI: | 10.1177/00400599251346713 |
| ISSN: | 0040-0599 2163-5684 |
| Abstract: | According to national assessment data, only 28% of eighth-grade students in the United States perform at grade level in math (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2024). Among students with disabilities, only 7% of eighth-grade students demonstrate proficiency in math. Middle school students with a range of disability types are at increased risk of experiencing "mathematics difficulty," or MD, a term used to describe students with disabilities who have individualized education program goals in math and students with persistent difficulty in math who might be at risk for disabilities. For all middle school students with MD, challenges with foundational math concepts taught in elementary school can exacerbate difficulties learning increasingly abstract, complex math content in middle school (Cirino et al., 2016; Moser Opitz et al., 2017). In this article, the authors highlight five instructional practices that have emerged as research-validated practices for use with middle school students with MD. These suggested practices are based on research studies addressing math instruction and intervention in the middle school grades (Gersten et al., 2009; Jitendra, Nelson, et al., 2016; Lariviere et al., 2024; Marita & Hord, 2017; Powell et al., 2021a; Star et al., 2015; Woodward et al., 2018). |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1502538 |
| Database: | ERIC |
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| Abstract: | According to national assessment data, only 28% of eighth-grade students in the United States perform at grade level in math (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2024). Among students with disabilities, only 7% of eighth-grade students demonstrate proficiency in math. Middle school students with a range of disability types are at increased risk of experiencing "mathematics difficulty," or MD, a term used to describe students with disabilities who have individualized education program goals in math and students with persistent difficulty in math who might be at risk for disabilities. For all middle school students with MD, challenges with foundational math concepts taught in elementary school can exacerbate difficulties learning increasingly abstract, complex math content in middle school (Cirino et al., 2016; Moser Opitz et al., 2017). In this article, the authors highlight five instructional practices that have emerged as research-validated practices for use with middle school students with MD. These suggested practices are based on research studies addressing math instruction and intervention in the middle school grades (Gersten et al., 2009; Jitendra, Nelson, et al., 2016; Lariviere et al., 2024; Marita & Hord, 2017; Powell et al., 2021a; Star et al., 2015; Woodward et al., 2018). |
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| ISSN: | 0040-0599 2163-5684 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/00400599251346713 |
