"I think it's fun, and sort of challenging, but this is just me—I like challenges": Exploring Early Elementary School Students' Emerging Mathematics Identities

Altshuler, Mari

doi:https://doi.org/10.21985/n2-k32k-aj54

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"I think it's fun, and sort of challenging, but this is just me—I like challenges": Exploring Early Elementary School Students' Emerging Mathematics Identities

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This dissertation explores the mathematics identities of early elementary school students. Throughout school, many students come to believe that mathematics is not for them or is not a part of who they are or want to be. Previous research has revealed mechanisms that lead to negative relationships with mathematics for middle grade students and beyond, but despite the importance of early childhood for later development, there is little related research with elementary school children. This dissertation addresses this gap in the literature by investigating young children’s perceptions of and relationships with mathematics. Specifically, it asked three questions: Which facets of early elementary school students’ relationships with mathematics differentiate among their emerging mathematics identities? What features of classroom environments contribute to the development of positive mathematics identities for early elementary school students? And, what can we learn about young children’s emerging mathematics identities from the mathematics activities that they initiate? Data collection involved three rounds of semi-structured interviews with 30 young children in the Chicagoland area, who at the beginning of the study were enrolled in Kindergarten, first, or second grade. The first round of interviews took place in the spring of 2020, soon after school buildings had first closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second round took place during the summer, and the third round took place the following fall when students were in the proceeding grade level. The interviews prompted the participants to tell stories about their experiences with and feelings towards learning and doing math both within and outside of school, in the present and the future. Qualitative analysis involved both inductive and deductive methods, and resulted in three primary findings that aligned with each of the research questions. First, whether or not students liked math and whether or not they opted to engage in mathematics outside of school seemed to be more meaningful facets of their relationships with mathematics than whether they saw mathematics as a part of their futures or whether they perceived themselves as successful. Second, having conceptual agency, opportunities for self-expression, the ability to be with peers, access to support and learning, being physically comfortable, having control over pace and schedule, and having fun were all features of the learning environment that appeared supportive of children’s positive experiences learning mathematics. Third, when children seized mathematical agency and orchestrated mathematics experiences for themselves outside of their classrooms, they did so in ways that were more expansive and creative than in school. Across these findings, agency emerged as an important through line. Specifically, children in this study expressed having, appreciating, or seeking five distinct types of agency as parts of their mathematics learning experiences: conceptual, creative, physical, temporal, and interactive. These Five Dimensions of Agency extend the literature’s previous descriptions of agency to better encapsulate the intellectual, emotional, physical, and social experiences of a student in a mathematics classroom. The relationship between agency and mathematics identity can be described as mutually reinforcing, and in turn attending to young students’ opportunities for agency is key in supporting their positive mathematics identity development. This takeaway has implications both for future math identity research and for classroom educators looking to ensure that more of their young students form positive relationships with mathematics.

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