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Publication Date
2025
Document Type
Poster
Degree Type
Undergraduate
Department
Special Education
Mentor
Dr. Christy Borders
Mentor Department
Special Education
Co-Mentor
Dr. Michelle Gremp
Co-Mentor Department
Special Education
Abstract
Language acquisition is directly related to number learning because of the strong correlation of vocabulary to number word learning. Deaf/hard of hearing (DHH) students who receive delayed exposure to language tend to fall behind their hearing peers in mathematics even though DHH individuals have the same foundational, non-symbolic cognitive systems that lay the foundation for mathematical development and a similar ability to learn from perceptual experience (Shusterman & Peretz- Lange, 2022). Through this research study, the team of researchers will be examining the impact of various math activities incorporating movement on Deaf preschool students’ counting, subitizing (quickly and fluently recognizing sets without counting individually), and problem-solving. Participants’ problem-solving, subitizing, and counting will be measured across conditions such as fine motor vs. gross motor activities; nonacademic movement prior vs not; and balance/coordination vs. reaction time activities. There is a strong link between body and mind in learning, so by increasing movement in the classroom, children are more actively engaged, and their brains are better prepared to learn (Kosmas et al., 2019).
The research team, which will be working closely with preschool DHH teachers, comprises faculty across various disciplines, including early childhood math, math education, physical education, and education of the deaf and hard of hearing, as well as two teacher candidates in the DHH program. The team will meet two times a week for one and a half hours with rotating conditions to see whether movement affects math acquisition in young DHH students. The students will be broken up into three groups, each group receiving a different treatment, and they will rotate treatments monthly. The groups will be broken up into fine motor math, gross motor math, and gross motor with no math. The alternating treatment design will allow researchers to evaluate and compare the conditions. Through this study, we are looking at three specific questions: 1) What is the impact of regular math activities incorporating movement on problem-solving, counting, and subitizing in preschool DHH students? 2) What do teacher candidates who are involved on an interdisciplinary team delivering math activities incorporating movement to DHH preschoolers see as benefits and obstacles to their teacher training? 3) How does engagement in this project impact selfefficacy to teach math to DHH students for DHH preschool teachers and teacher education candidates? Individual students will be analyzed to discover the possible effects of movement and to inform future math instruction for those students.
Recommended Citation
Czirjak, Annie; Borders, Christy; Gremp, Michelle; Corven, Julien; Henniger, Mary; and Williams, Skip, "Deaf/Hard of Hearing Early Childhood Education Movement and Math Study" (2025). University Research Symposium. 490.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/rsp_urs/490