3C: Is Flexible Grouping Beneficial? Small Group Instructional Practices In Elementary School Math on Achievement, Motivation, and Self-Efficacy

Abstract

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to assist in alleviating the research gap on the use of the small-group, flexible-grouping instructional strategies in general education inclusion classes during the mathematics segment. This study was based on Vygotsky’s research on the Zone of Proximal Development. In this pre-test/post-test-control group design (N = 34), seventeen fifth grade students in a rural elementary school participated in small-group, flexible-grouping, math instruction for two academic units. During the implementation of this project, students received a whole group mini-lesson, then broke into differentiated stations. Students in the treatment group, were given a formative assessment each day to determine their level of understanding. This allowed the teacher to create fluid groups. Prior to the implementation of the instructional strategy, students in the treatment group and control group completed two questionnaires, Students’ Motivation Towards Mathematics Learning (SMTML) Questionnaire and Mathematics Self-Efficacy and Anxiety Questionnaire (MSEAQ). The students also completed a pre-test and post-test at the beginning and end of each instructional unit. The purpose of the research strategy was to determine the impact of flexible grouping on academic achievement, motivation, and self-efficacy.

Keywords: flexible-grouping, mathematics education, elementary mathematics, small-group instruction,