CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Mathematical modeling ability is a crucial component of mathematical literacy.
However, modeling research has shown that students face a variety of challenges when
tackling modeling problems (Blum, 2015). Even at the start of the solution process, learners
frequently struggle to comprehend the real-world scenario and to structure and simplify the
information provided (Blum, 2015; Kintsch & Greeno, 1985; Krawitz et al., 2017; Wijaya et
al., 2014). To overcome these obstacles, individuals require modeling sub-competencies in
order to build a structured and simplified mental representation of the real-world situation,
referred to as the real-world model (Kaiser & Brand, 2015). As a result, components aimed at
improving the building of a real-world model have frequently been added in instructional
approaches for modeling problems (Greefrath et al., 2018; Kaiser & Brand, 2015;
Schukajlow et al., 2018).
Modeling challenges in the classroom are frequently provided in text form, reading
comprehension is critical in the building of a real-world model (Leiss et al., 2013). In
addition, the process of addressing modeling problems in everyday life frequently requires
acquiring and evaluating information supplied in text form (e.g., newspapers, schedules,
books). As a result, reading comprehension is frequently necessary to understand the real-
world scenario, and interventions that address students' reading comprehension appear to be
promising for nurturing the ability to construct a real-world model and therefore enhancing
one's total modeling competency. However, there hasn't been much study on the impact of
reading treatments on modeling competence and modeling sub-competencies. There has been
a distinct paucity of experimental research. However, little research has been conducted on
the impact of reading treatments on modeling competence and modeling sub-competencies.
There has been a dearth of experimental interventional investigations in the field, in particular
(Schukajlow et al., 2018).
According to Guthrie (2014) in her study said classroom practices such as
collaboration, engagement with informational text, comprehension, and motivation positively
affect the literary development of students. On the contrary, according to Nicholas and Emata
(2018) mixed method study was to learn about the effectiveness of the integrative approach
through reading comprehension as a strategy in teaching mathematics to enhance the
problem-solving skills of Grade 7 students. They stressed that poor listening ability, limited
vocabulary, and poor retention were the problems that they experienced. They also
recommended that in order to improve the implementation of the strategy, teachers may
provide more examples, discussion, evaluation and intervention activities, and collaborative
activities; enrich the vocabulary of the students; and improve the means of instruction.
According to Ozturk (2020) in his study non-routine Mathematics problem-solving
skills, all related factors–reading comprehension, Mathematics self-efficacy perception and
Mathematics attitude were significant. Reading comprehension skills and Mathematics self-
efficacy perception significantly predicted problem-solving skills, and both predictors
explained a total of 22% of the total variance. However, on Schult (2022) study he concluded
that regarding mathematics, low-achieving students seem to have a learning backlog that
deserves attention in future education. School characteristics such as the average
sociocultural capital and the proportion of students with a migration background played a
minor role in mediating the schools’ learning loss. Still, lower sociocultural capital was
positively associated with larger learning loss in mathematics.
The findings from Pongsakdi (2020) underscore the intricate interplay between text
comprehension, arithmetic skills, and mathematical problem-solving (WP-solving)
performance. The observation that students poor in text comprehension but proficient in
arithmetic outperformed their counterparts in easy items suggests a compensatory mechanism
where strong arithmetic skills can mitigate the impact of weaker text comprehension abilities
in certain scenarios. However, the convergence of performance on difficult items highlights
the demand for a synergistic combination of both text comprehension and arithmetic skills
when tackling more challenging mathematical problems.
Torppa's (2020) study complements these insights by shedding light on the broader
implications of reading-related challenges, particularly in the realm of motivation and well-
being. The revelation that slows readers exhibited low scores exclusively in reading-related
motivation emphasizes the specific impact of reading difficulties on motivational aspects.
Moreover, the extension of low motivation to math and science, coupled with higher levels of
burnout and lower school enjoyment among poor comprehenders and poor readers,
underscores the pervasive nature of these challenges across different academic domains. The
consistency of these findings across genders highlights the universality of the observed
patterns, transcending gender differences in the impact of reading-related issues on
motivation and well-being. Collectively, the research by Pongsakdi and Torppa contributes to
our understanding of the complex relationship between literacy skills, mathematical problem-
solving, and overall academic well-being. These insights could inform educational
interventions tailored to address the specific needs of students with varying profiles of
strengths and weaknesses in text comprehension and arithmetic, fostering a more holistic
approach to educational support.
According to Dustanti and Ayu (2021) there were positive correlation between
cognitive reading strategies and English proficiency test scores. Students were usually and
sometimes used cognitive reading strategy while reading a text. Furthermore, Elleman (2019)
said that students with various methods and reading strategies develop an early and sustained
focus on developing background knowledge, vocabulary, inference, and comprehension
monitoring skills across development will be necessary to improve comprehension.
In the study of Fuchs et al. (2015) clarified "[w]ord-problem (WP) solving differs
from other forms of mathematics competence because it requires students to decipher text
describing a problem situation and derive the number sentence representing the situation" (p.
204). Content-area teachers are becoming aware of the relationship between these two
subjects and are adding reading into the mathematics curriculum because of the necessity.
Bernadowski (2016) stated "[i]n an era of accountability and standards-based instruction, it is
no secret that content area teachers are finding themselves in the throes of literacy
instruction" (p. 3).
Moreover, the results of the study of Vilenius et al (2013) showed that performance on
maths word problems was strongly related to performance in reading comprehension. Fluent
technical reading abilities increased the aforementioned skills. However, even after
controlling for the level of technical reading involved, performance in maths word problems
was still related to reading comprehension, suggesting that both of these skills require overall
reasoning abilities. There were no gender differences in maths word problem ‐solving
performance, but the girls were better in technical reading and in reading comprehension.
Parental levels of education positively predicted children’s maths word problem ‐solving
performance and reading comprehension skills.
Findings of the research of Akbasli et al. (2016) research indicate that there is a
correlation between difficulties in mathematics: Relating mathematics skills and reading
comprehension.
The findings in the study of Salihu et al. (2018) showed that there were no gender
differences in mathematics achievement, whereas children's urban or rural locations as well
as their socio-economic status were observed to have a substantial impact on mathematics
performance of children in the main sample, but not for those in the subsample. For children
with learning difficulties in mathematics, the initial level of reading skills was a powerful
determinant of their later mathematics performance and the initial level of mathematics skills
was also similarly predictive of reading comprehension. The children's background
characteristics did not add explanatory variance in performance outcomes over their previous
mathematics and reading skills learned during the first years of primary school. The high
association between mathematics performance and reading comprehension suggests that
mathematics and reading problems may result from a similar cognitive background.
In the study conducted by Tuohimaa et al. (2013), the results showed that
performance on maths word problems was strongly related to performance in reading
comprehension. Fluent technical reading abilities increased the aforementioned skills.
However, even after controlling for the level of technical reading involved, performance in
maths word problems was still related to reading comprehension, suggesting that both of
these skills require overall reasoning abilities. There were no gender differences in maths
word problem‐solving performance, but the girls were better in technical reading and in
reading comprehension. Parental levels of education positively predicted children’s maths
word problem‐solving performance and reading comprehension skills.
Furthermore, in the study of Magnus Österholm (2014), the results reveal a similarity
in reading comprehension between the mathematical text without symbols and the historical
text, and also a difference in reading comprehension between the two mathematical texts.
This result suggests that mathematics in itself is not the most dominant aspect affecting the
reading comprehension process, but the use of symbols in the text is a more relevant factor.
Although the university students had studied more mathematics courses than the upper
secondary students, there was only a small and insignificant difference between these groups
regarding reading comprehension of the mathematical text with symbols. This finding
suggests that there is a need for more explicit teaching of reading comprehension for texts
including symbols.
Recently, studies have shown that Mathematics attitude and Mathematics self-efficacy
as affective factors, and reading comprehension as a cognitive factor could play a crucial role
in the problem-solving of middle school students. This study investigated the influence of
reading comprehension skill, Mathematics self-efficacy perception and Mathematics attitude
on non-routine Mathematics problem-solving skills. It is hypothesized that non-routine
problem-solving skills are related to reading comprehension skills, Mathematics self-efficacy
perception and Mathematics attitudes. To achieve this aim, a reading comprehension skill
test, a Mathematics self-efficacy perception scale, a Mathematics attitude scale and a non-
routine problem-solving skill test were applied. The instruments were completed by 362
middle school students. A correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship of
variables on non-routine problem-solving skills, and the predictive effects of the predictor
variables on non-routine Mathematics problem-solving skills were examined by hierarchical
regression analysis. The analysis also showed that for middle-school students’ non-routine
Mathematics problem-solving skills, all related factors–reading comprehension, Mathematics
self-efficacy perception and Mathematics attitude were significant. Reading comprehension
skills and Mathematics self-efficacy perception significantly predicted problem-solving skills,
and both predictors explained a total of 22% of the total variance Öztürk, (2020).
Moreover, in the study conducted by Emrullah Erdem (2016), results show that there
is a significantly positive correlation between 8th graders’ mathematical reasoning and
reading comprehension. Considering the relationship emerging from these two skills, it can
be said that mathematical reasoning and reading comprehension skills, especially in Turkish
and mathematics courses, should be used and developed more efficiently.
Similarly, in the study conducted by Hadianto et al. (2021), the results showed that the
ability to read comprehension had a very strong relationship with the ability to solve
mathematical word problems. The ability to understand the relationship between words and
words in a sentence that contains problems is crucial for students to solve mathematical word
problems. The school cluster chosen also influences the level of children's mathematical word
problem solving ability and reading comprehension skills. From the results of this study,
researcher recommend teaching reading and counting in elementary schools be carried out in
an integrated manner.
On contrary, many people believe that mathematics does not correlate with reading;
however, available research suggests otherwise. Reading and mathematics are not typically
taught by the same teacher; however, reading comprehension strategies in math classrooms
may benefit both instruction and student comprehension (Anna L. Gomez, Elena D. Pecina,
Sara Abi Villanueva and Tonya Huber) (2020).
