Reasoning With Conditionals About Everyday and Mathematical Concepts in Primary School

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Development
• Educational Psychology
• Mathematics Education

Background:

• Conditional reasoning (if-then statements) is crucial for mathematics, yet research links it primarily to older adolescents and adults.
• Primary students possess early conditional reasoning skills in familiar contexts, but their mathematical reasoning abilities remain less understood.
• Mental Model Theory (MMT) predicts content knowledge influences reasoning with mathematical conditionals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how conditional reasoning with mathematical concepts develops in primary school students.
• To compare conditional reasoning in everyday versus mathematical contexts across different grade levels.
• To test predictions of Mental Model Theory (MMT) in primary school students' mathematical reasoning.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving 102 students from grades 2, 4, and 6 in Cyprus.
• Students solved conditional reasoning tasks (modus ponens, modus tollens, denial of the antecedent, affirmation of the consequent) in everyday and mathematical contexts.
• Working Memory (WM) was controlled for, and response patterns were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Students demonstrated developing conditional reasoning skills across logical forms, with significant effects of grade and logical form.
• Growth was stronger for modus ponens (MP) and affirmation of the consequent (AC) compared to modus tollens (MT) and denial of the antecedent (DA).
• Context (everyday vs. mathematical) did not have a main effect but interacted significantly with logical form and grade level; MMT predictions were not fully supported.

Conclusions:

• Conditional reasoning skills in primary students develop gradually, influenced by both domain-general principles and domain-specific knowledge.
• The study extends understanding of conditional reasoning development from everyday contexts to mathematical concepts in primary school.
• Findings suggest potential for educational interventions to foster deductive reasoning in mathematics.