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Investigating mathematics writing performance of Chinese middle school students.

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Title: Investigating mathematics writing performance of Chinese middle school students.
Authors: Li, Yijie1 (AUTHOR), Lin, Xin1 (AUTHOR) xinlin@um.edu.mo, Cheng, Gege1 (AUTHOR)
Source: Reading & Writing. Apr2026, Vol. 39 Issue 4, p1235-1259. 25p.
Subject Terms: *Middle school students, *Mathematics education, *Academic achievement, *Teaching methods, *Pedagogical content knowledge, Numeracy
Abstract: Previous research has emphasized the crucial role of mastering mathematics content in developing mathematics writing (MW) skills. However, there is limited empirical evidence to explore the relationship between improved mathematics content knowledge and MW performance. This study aims to investigate how students enhanced mathematical understanding is reflected in their ability to communicate mathematical reasoning effectively. The study analyzed data from a sample of 145 seventh-grade students. The findings reveal that, despite possessing more advanced mathematics content knowledge than primary school students, middle school students continue to encounter significant challenges in MW. Specifically, students demonstrated stronger organizational skills in general writing compared to MW. In MW, key limitations included a restricted mathematics vocabulary, frequent grammatical errors, and an overemphasis on procedural knowledge at the expense of conceptual understanding. These results suggest a significant gap in students' ability to clearly and effectively express mathematical reasoning, highlighting the need for targeted instructional strategies to support the development of MW skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Reading & Writing is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Investigating mathematics writing performance of Chinese middle school students.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Li%2C+Yijie%22">Li, Yijie</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lin%2C+Xin%22">Lin, Xin</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> xinlin@um.edu.mo</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Cheng%2C+Gege%22">Cheng, Gege</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Reading+%26+Writing%22">Reading & Writing</searchLink>. Apr2026, Vol. 39 Issue 4, p1235-1259. 25p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Middle+school+students%22">Middle school students</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mathematics+education%22">Mathematics education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Academic+achievement%22">Academic achievement</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Teaching+methods%22">Teaching methods</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pedagogical+content+knowledge%22">Pedagogical content knowledge</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Numeracy%22">Numeracy</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Previous research has emphasized the crucial role of mastering mathematics content in developing mathematics writing (MW) skills. However, there is limited empirical evidence to explore the relationship between improved mathematics content knowledge and MW performance. This study aims to investigate how students enhanced mathematical understanding is reflected in their ability to communicate mathematical reasoning effectively. The study analyzed data from a sample of 145 seventh-grade students. The findings reveal that, despite possessing more advanced mathematics content knowledge than primary school students, middle school students continue to encounter significant challenges in MW. Specifically, students demonstrated stronger organizational skills in general writing compared to MW. In MW, key limitations included a restricted mathematics vocabulary, frequent grammatical errors, and an overemphasis on procedural knowledge at the expense of conceptual understanding. These results suggest a significant gap in students' ability to clearly and effectively express mathematical reasoning, highlighting the need for targeted instructional strategies to support the development of MW skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Reading & Writing is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1007/s11145-025-10649-5
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        Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Middle school students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mathematics education
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      – SubjectFull: Academic achievement
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      – SubjectFull: Pedagogical content knowledge
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              M: 04
              Text: Apr2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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