Cognitive Domain Predictors of Mathematics Achievement in Junior High School Learners: A Rapid Mathematics Assessment Study
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Abstract
Background and Aim: Mathematics achievement is a key focus in education, especially in relation to cognitive performance. The frameworks emphasize knowing, applying, and reasoning, but there is little empirical research on interpreting as a predictor. This study aimed to determine the cognitive domain predictors of mathematics achievement of learners in the junior high school through rapid mathematics assessment.
Materials and Methods: The study employed quantitative descriptive-correlational research using a total of 233 Grade 7-10 Junior High School learners of a public secondary school in Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte, Philippines. Stratified random sampling was used to obtain a sample that represented all grade levels. The Regional Unified Quarterly Assessment (RUQA) was used to measure mathematics achievement, and the Rapid Mathematics Assessment was used to measure cognitive-domain performance. Descriptive statistics were used to determine proficiency levels. The Shapiro–Wilk test showed that the distribution of the data was not normal, so Spearman's rho correlation was used to explore the statistical relationships between variables. Multiple linear regression analyses were also performed to determine significant cognitive predictors of mathematics achievement.
Results: The findings revealed that students' mathematics achievement was at an average mastery level (M = 52.1, SD = 11.78). Learners were approaching proficiency in knowing (M = 55.10, SD = 20.40), interpreting (M = 56.40, SD = 23.40), and reasoning (M = 52.80, SD = 26.30), while applying showed low proficiency (M = 45.60, SD = 22.70). Spearman's rho indicated statistically significant positive correlations between mathematics achievement and knowing (ρ = .257, p < .001); interpreting (ρ = .347, p < .001); applying (ρ = .204, p = .002); and reasoning (ρ = .171, p = .009). The results for multiple regression yielded a model that was statistically significant, F (4, 227) = 8.16, p < .001, with a variance accounted for of 13% for mathematics achievement (R² = .130). Of the cognitive domains, only 'interpreting' was a significant predictor of mathematics achievement (B = 0.2198, p < .001), whereas knowing, applying, and reasoning were not significant in the analyses that accounted for shared variance.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that mathematics achievement is influenced by interconnected cognitive processes, with interpreting emerging as the unique predictor of learners’ mathematical performance. This suggests that learners’ ability to construct meaning from mathematical representations and contextual information plays a central role in mathematical understanding and achievement. Strengthening interpretation-centered instruction through conceptual, contextual, and inquiry-based learning approaches may improve mathematical literacy, higher-order thinking skills, and overall mathematics proficiency among junior high school learners.
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