Assessing kindergarteners’ mathematics problem solving: The development of a cognitive diagnostic test

  • Li Li*
  • , Xin Zhou
  • , Jin Huang
  • , Dongbo Tu
  • , Xuliang Gao
  • , Zhiyan Yang
  • , Meifang Li
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study aimed to develop an instrument for assessing kindergarteners’ mathematics problem solving (MPS) by using cognitive diagnostic assessment (CDA). A total of 747 children were recruited to examine the psychometric properties of the cognitive diagnostic test. The results showed that the classification accuracy of 11 cognitive attributes ranged from .68 to .99, with the average being .84. Both the cognitive diagnostic test score and the average mastery probabilities of the 11 cognitive attributes had moderate correlations with the Applied Problem subtest and the Calculation subtest of the Woodcock–Johnson IV Tests of Achievement. Moreover, the correlation between the cognitive diagnostic test and the Applied Problems subtest was higher than that between the cognitive diagnostic test and the Calculation subtest. The results indicated that the formal cognitive diagnostic test was a reliable instrument for assessing kindergarteners’ MPS in the domain of number and operations.

Original languageEnglish
Article number100879
JournalStudies in Educational Evaluation
Volume66
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2020

Keywords

  • Cognitive diagnostic assessment
  • Mathematical knowledge and skills
  • Mathematics problem solving
  • Quantitative reasoning
  • Semantic structure understanding

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Assessing kindergarteners’ mathematics problem solving: The development of a cognitive diagnostic test'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this