An investigation of the relationships of gender, spatial visualization, final course grade, participation, and placement in college-level and developmental mathematics
Abstract
The relationships of spatial visualization, gender, previously-taken mathematics courses, involvement in remedial-developmental courses, present mathematics courses, and final course grade produced highly significant statistical results in this study. The study was conducted at a two-year technical institute on 961 students. The spatial visualization test used was the Purdue Spatial Visualization Test: Rotations. A stepwise multiple regression determined that the linear combination of the variables of spatial visualization, gender, and the number of previously-taken mathematics courses had a significant effect on the final course grade. The R square value was approximately.04. Two stepwise multiple regressions determined that the linear combinations of the variables of gender, the number of previously-taken geometric-trigonometric courses with and without calculus, and the number of previously-taken other mathematics courses had significant effects on the spatial visualization score; the R square value for the geometric-trigonometric category without calculus was.14, and it was.139 when calculus was included in that category. A two-way analysis of variance examined the effects of gender and present course on spatial visualization. Significant main effects were found for gender and present course; males scored higher, and higher-level courses produced higher scores. Another two-way analysis of variance revealed significant main effects on spatial visualization for gender and whether remedial-developmental classes had been taken; males scored higher, and those who entered college-level courses without taking remedial-developmental classes had the highest mean spatial visualization scores.
Subject Area
Mathematics education|Educational evaluation|Higher education
Recommended Citation
Susan Joyce Sundquist Jones,
"An investigation of the relationships of gender, spatial visualization, final course grade, participation, and placement in college-level and developmental mathematics"
(1994).
ETD Collection for Tennessee State University.
Paper AAI9608777.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI9608777