Math Diagnostic Options?

[FrabjousDay]

Hi, all,

Asking here because I need BTDT advice. I was on these boards for a looong time (yvonne in ca) a while back. My kids are all in college or grad school now, and I'm teaching the children of a couple families from my church now. 

I have a rising 7th grader who is very behind in math. Being in public school through grade 5 during the Covid virtual "learning" years may be why she's so behind. Or there may be something else going on. Her reading is good. Other than math, she is an average student. 

Last year, I did Abeka math 6 with her, thinking I (and her once a week math tutor) would be able to backfill any holes we came across. She only got through 75% of the book and, even so, even with all the time we put in, she hasn't retained what I'd have expected. 

Is there a good general math diagnostic test, not tied to any specific curriculum/program, that I could use with her? 

Would you....
Get Rod & Staff's math tests for each grade, have her start at the first chapter test for grade four math, and teach what she misses as she goes along?

Use Saxon? I had her do the 5/4 placement test and she only got 7 out of 20 questions correct.  She needs a lot of practice problems on new concepts, so Saxon isn't great for that.

Start back at the beginning of Abeka 6 with the first chapter test and re-teach what she hasn't mastered, ...?


What would you do?
 

[HomeAgain]

When I've begun with a kid, I usually start out playing games.  I want to see a few things in real time, not on paper:

1. recall of basic facts

2. how they approach word problems

3. how far they can stretch their knowledge

 

These are usually where the problems lie. I'll bring in things like Prime Climb, MEP puzzles (starting with year 2 for middle schoolers), Math Kangaroo practice exams.. I want to see how they're thinking through things and if it's a matter of trying to recall procedure or really understanding what the question is asking.

If test anxiety is a factor, I want to remove that at first.  If problems look unfamiliar, I want the chance to have them talk it out, use manipulatives, or sketch it.  Then we start behind where the data said a kid was so that we can fill in strategy gaps.  Once the strategy is familiar, then we can move it up to the appropriate middle school level.

[Malam]

https://www.setontesting.com/product/adam-k-7-assessment-of-mathematics/

[FrabjousDay]

Malam, This looks very thorough. Have you used it and found it to be an effective test? 

Thank you so much for posting it.

[smfmommy]

AOP has diagnostic tests for each subject.  The math has 10 problems for each booklet (10 per year).  I used it once as an elementary review for my boy.

https://www.aop.com/homeschooling/assessment-and-placement-tests

Could there be a dyscalculia issue that is blocking her ability to retain math?

 

[FrabjousDay]

smfmommy,

Thanks for the AOP suggestion. I'll check it out.

I did try the Seton/Let's Go Learn ADAM math diagnostic mentioned by a previous poster and it is very detailed & helpful. It looks at 5 strands of math: Numbers & Operations, Measurement, Geometry, Data Analysis (graphs & probability mainly), and Algebra.  The rising 7th grader tested at a 5.12 grade level overall, so beginning 5th grade level. She's especially weak in Measurement, Geometry, and Data Analysis. 

I don't have any training or experience with someone with dyscalculia, but I had a feeling through 6th grade (I had her for the last 6 months of 6th grade) that something was off for several reasons. After I got the results of the test, I started reading about dyscalculia and, wow!, did the symptoms describe this student!

1) She doesn't have issues across the board, just with math and spelling. I almost think the two might be related somehow. Her reading, reading comprehension, and vocab are excellent.  

2) She came into 6th using her fingers for all calculations!? I've taught 1st & 6th grades at a private school years ago but only for 5 years total, and I have never seen that before. Even simple calculations like 17 +2. 

3) She can learn to do processes, like adding fractions with different denominators, adding/subtracting decimals with different numbers of places after the decimal,... But it just does not stay in her long term memory.

4) She has incredible difficulty with things like perimeter & area. I've tried different ways to get her to understand perimeter (and circumference) as the distance around an object or space and area as the area covered, like a rug, but she really does not understand it. She also has a lot of trouble looking at a 2D net and seeing that it would fold up to form a square, not a triangle or whatever else!

So, yes, I would bet she has dyscalculia, but I'm in no position to actually know for a fact that she does. She's had a long time (3 year) math tutor who thinks it's more that she "makes silly mistakes," but  I really think it's more than that. OTOH, I am not an expert and wouldn't her teachers in public school in grades 3-5 have suggested testing if they thought there was an issue?

 

 

[FrabjousDay]

On 8/13/2023 at 1:11 PM, Malam said:

https://www.setontesting.com/product/adam-k-7-assessment-of-mathematics/

Thank you so much, Malam!  I had the student do the Seton math diagnostic and it is extraordinarily helpful. A lot of detail to pinpoint where the student is in each of 5 areas of math. Super, super useful and relatively inexpensive at $25.  I can definitely see using it for other students in the future.

Thanks, again!

 

[EKS]

When I had to fill numerous gaps with a kid at about that level, I used MUS Beta-Zeta over the course of six months.  The great thing about MUS is that is easy to speed up and slow down as needed.  It also gives a good conceptual base for arithmetic.  And there are no numbers on the levels.

By the time we finished with Zeta, he tested at the post high school level on math computation on the WJ-III (individually administered achievement test).  This says more about the average post high school person than it did him--he really had just mastered sixth grade arithmetic.

It's an expensive option, but it was worth it for us.